Crude oil futures in the Asian market surged on Monday due to the approaching potential hurricane system along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico in the usa, and rebounded from the selling pressure after weaker-than-expected US employment data on Friday.
Zhongtong Finance and Economics APP noticed that crude oil futures in the Asian market surged on Monday due to the approaching potential hurricane system along the coast of the usa's Gulf of Mexico, and the decision of OPEC+ to delay the production increase plan of 0.18 million barrels per day until December also supported the rebound trend of crude oil prices to some extent.
As of the time of publication, WTI crude oil futures rose 72 cents to $68.39 per barrel, up 1.06%. Brent crude oil futures rose 71 cents to $71.77 per barrel, up 1%.
Analysts say that this rebound is partly a response to the potential hurricane approaching the coast of the Gulf of Mexico in the usa.
The US National Hurricane Center said on Sunday that a tropical storm in the southwestern Gulf of Mexico is expected to become a hurricane before reaching the coast of the northwestern Gulf of Mexico in the usa. Refining capacity along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico in the usa accounts for about 60% of the country's total refining capacity.
Independent market analyst Tina Teng said, "Market sentiment has somewhat recovered from last week's sell-off."
Analyst John Evans from PVM said, "The crude oil prices saw a slight rebound this morning due to the hurricane warning affecting the supply along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico in the usa, but the broader discussion remains about where the demand will come from and what OPEC+ can do."
As of the close of last Friday, Brent crude oil fell 10% during the week to the lowest level since December 2021, while WTI crude oil fell by 8% due to the impact of weak US employment data, closing at the lowest level since June 2023.
The highly anticipated employment report shows that the non-farm payroll employment in the United States increased by 0.142 million in August, lower than market expectations. The non-farm payroll employment in July was revised downward to an increase of 0.089 million, the smallest increase since December 2020 when it declined sharply.
Analysts say that the decrease in the unemployment rate means that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by 25 basis points this month, instead of 50 basis points.
Lower interest rates usually stimulate economic growth, make oil prices cheaper for non-dollar currency holders, and increase oil demand. However, weak demand continues to limit price increases.
Jeff Currie, Chief Strategist for Energy Pathways at the American investment giant The Carlyle Group, said on Monday at the APPEC Energy Conference in Singapore that the weakness in Asia is driven by economic slowdown and destocking.
Due to weak demand from the two major economies, Asia's refining margins have fallen to their lowest seasonal level since 2020. As refining margins decline, fuel oil exports to the US Gulf Coast last month fell to their lowest level since January 2019.