Spot Cargo Markets — Traders Eye $100 Brent

摘要

Brent failed to hold above $80 per barrel last week but traders are still betting that the international oil benchmark could hit $100/bbl as early as August. The Trump administration is threatening to slap the biggest sanctions in US history against Iran, at the same time as announcing another round of sanctions against Venezuela following the re-election of President Nicolas Maduro in a process widely seen as a sham. The sanctions target two major oil producers at a time when spare capacity is already being stretched paper thin. Oil demand is robust and inventories tumbling thanks to Opec and non-Opec’s strict compliance with production quotas since the start of last year. There are signs solidarity in the group could be ebbing, however, with Russian producers pressuring Moscow to lift output limits now that prices are rising.