Oil is at the highest level since the start of the pandemic. The barrel of Brent has not crossed the $60 mark since February 20, 2021. Cap on $60 for Brent. After four consecutive sessions of increases, oil prices rose again this Friday, February 05, 2021. Around 10:50 a.m. GMT (11:50 a.m. in Paris), the barrel of Brent from the North Sea for delivery in April gained 1.10% in London compared to as of Thursday's close at $59.49, shortly after touching $59.75.
The barrel of oil “continues to soar and Brent is approaching the important psychological bar of 60 dollars” according to Eugen Weinberg, analyst at Commerzbank. The American barrel of WTI for the month of March appreciated at the same time by 1.08% to 56.84 dollars, after having reached 57.09 dollars, the highest since January 22, 2020.
This uptrend is driven by supportive comments from OPEC coming out of their meeting on Wednesday. The members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and their allies have indeed expressed their confidence in the recovery of the world economy, and by extension that of the demand for crude oil.