WTI crude oil prices rose in January

According to experts, the results of the past month showed an increase in WTI oil quotes by 18.67% to $ 53.90 per barrel. This is the most impressive growth for the first month of the year in the entire history of trading, analysts emphasized.

On Thursday, January 31, quotes for March futures for WTI oil on the NYMEX exchange reached $ 55 per barrel. Since the beginning of this year, its price has increased by almost $ 9 per "barrel".

According to the calculations of the consulting company of OPEC, JBC Energy, recorded a decrease in the cartel's production level to 30.85 million barrels per day (b/d) in January 2019. The reason for the fall of experts believes the reduction of supply from Saudi Arabia. In general, the execution of the OPEC + contract of December 7 last year was implemented by 109%.

Russia also met the specified schedule of reductions. According to the Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation, Alexander Novak, the level of oil production in the country in January decreased by 50 thousand compared with the level of October 2018. At the same time, the January figure was about 100 thousand b/d lower than in December last year.

According to a US Energy Information Administration (EIA) report, oil production in the country rose to an impressive 11.9 million b/d in November 2018. At the same time, production volumes in the Gulf of Mexico were revised from 1.73 million to 1.92 million b/d. This indicator is a record for this region. The maximum oil production figures for this period recorded 4.84 million b/d extracted in Texas.

Market participants are positive about the results of the negotiations between the United States and China. They count on the mutual agreement of the parties. According to analysts, this reduces the risk of exacerbating protectionism and reducing global demand. The Fed meeting held on Thursday is also a driver for the growth of quotes. The American regulator believes that further increase in rates will depend on the market situation. A number of experts do not expect an increase in rates in the first half of 2019 and some expect to maintain the current situation in the next three quarters.