The incident with the container ship Even Given in the Suez Canal should not significantly affect the oil market, Maxim Biryukov, senior analyst at Alfa Capital, told Izvestia on Monday, March 29.
Earlier that day, oil prices fell during the morning trading session. As of 08:13 Moscow time, futures for a barrel of Brent on the London ICE exchange were traded at $ 63.12, which is 2.25% below the level of the close of trading last Friday. Later, quotes rebounded and decreased by 1.7% at 9:40 Moscow time.
“The shock was short-lived. The demand for fuel will grow as the lockdowns are lifted, which, given the current restrictions on production, will support prices, ”Biryukov said.
According to Artem Lyutik, Managing Director of Univer Capital, until the vaccination of the population is completed, fuel prices will be in the range of about $ 60-63 per barrel of Brent.
Now the movement of water transport must be restored, so oil prices will decline, the expert added. This comes amid the recovery of wells in Texas, which were hit by weather conditions in February, Buttercup said.
“The quotes also have support factors, first of all, the decisions of the OPEC + countries, which, contrary to forecasts, did not raise fuel production in March. The cartel members will meet in April to make a new decision on production, which will help the quotes stay within an acceptable range, ”the specialist concluded.
Earlier that day, the container ship Ever Given, which had blocked the Suez Canal, was floated. Later, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi announced a successful resolution of the situation.
Panama-flagged container ship Ever Given ran aground south of the Suez Canal on 23 March, blocking traffic. The Japanese company Shohei Kisen, the ship’s operator, attributed the incident to strong winds.
It was reported that there are more than 20 thousand heavy containers on board, which were transported from China to the Dutch port of Rotterdam. This is one of the largest vessels in its class: its length reaches 400 m, width – 59 m.