The price of oil rose moderately, recovering most of the positions lost yesterday. The price increase is due to the weakening of the US currency, as well as optimism about raising the US government debt ceiling. Since the beginning of the week, oil prices have risen by more than 3%, breaking a four-week fall in a row. However, since the beginning of 2023, oil prices have fallen by about 10% amid a sluggish economic recovery in China and the negative impact of the Fed rate hike on economic prospects, and, accordingly, oil demand.
The US Dollar Currency Index (DXY), which tracks the dynamics of the dollar against six currencies (euro, swiss franc, yen, canadian dollar, pound sterling and swedish krona) fell by 0.23% to 103.34.
Democratic negotiators told President Joe Biden that they are making "steady progress" in talks with Republicans. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said negotiators may reach an agreement in principle as soon as this weekend. That eased fears of an unprecedented and economically catastrophic default.
Earlier this week, the International Energy Agency (IEA) raised its forecast for global oil demand this year by 200,000 barrels per day, to a record 102 million barrels per day. The IEA said that the recovery of China's economy after the lifting of restrictions due to COVID-19 exceeded expectations, and demand in March reached a record 16 million barrels per day.
“We think we're going to have a deficit in supplies and throughout the second half of the year we'll start to see prices heading higher,” Bank of America analysts said.