The market remains bullish despite headwinds

The price of Brent 1st-nearby rose above $90/b yesterday even as US crude oil inventories rose for the second week in a row: +2.4mb. But it is true that the figures were mixed, with the increase concentrated in the Gulf of Mexico region while stocks at Cushing reached a very low level. The increase in gasoline stocks (+1.3mb) reflects the desire of refiners to meet strong demand during the driving season. Diesel stocks continued to fall (-2.8mb) in a context of strong demand. The only downside was the slowdown in jet fuel demand, which was linked to the slowdown in air traffic, but was expected to be transitory as it was due to Omicron.

The price of crude oil then followed the downward trajectory of risky assets following the statements of the Fed Chairman as explained in the Daily Eco. But this correction remained remarkably moderate, so that the price of a barrel of Brent crude oil is approaching $90 again. This seems to confirm a strong upward trend based on both the difficulty of oil supply to adjust to demand in the short term and the attractiveness of oil as a hedging instrument against inflationary risk. Not to mention the Russian geopolitical risk.