Oil prices soar as China demand recovers, Turkey quake disrupts supply
For two consecutive days, the price of oil has risen due to a mixture of favorable opinions concerning the rejuvenation of demand in China and concerns over supply shortages caused by the shutdown of a vital export terminal in Turkey following an earthquake.
As of 0804 GMT, Brent crude futures have increased by $1.74, a 2.15% increase, to $82.73 per barrel. Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate crude futures have gone up by $1.70, a 2.29% rise, to $75.81 per barrel.
An analyst at OANDA, Edward Moya, explains that the increase in crude prices is a consequence of the optimism for China’s recovery and the disruptions in supply caused by the damaging earthquake in Turkey.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) anticipates that China will be responsible for half of the growth in global oil demand this year, with a rise in the demand for jet fuel. Furthermore, Saudi Arabia, the leading oil exporter, has raised prices for its signature crude in Asia for the first time in six months because of the expectations of a resurgence in demand, particularly from China.
The 1 million barrel-per-day oil export terminal in Ceyhan, Turkey had to stop operations after a significant earthquake hit the area, causing the BTC terminal, which exports Azeri crude oil to global markets, to shut down from February 6-8.
