Bands on the run

摘要

Oil markets broke out of stable price bands towards the end of 2010, as an unexpectedly strong demand recovery and Opec production discipline tightened supply. Global crude benchmarks had risen just above $90/bl by the end of 2010, up from $78-79/bl a year earlier. Much of 2010 was marked by steady consolidation and rises from the price bands established in mid-2009, initially at $65-75/bl, then up to $85/bl. The exception was a sharp slump towards the end of May, when sovereign debt issues in the EU and indications of slowing demand growth in key non-OECD markets pushed benchmarks back to nearly $65/bl.