Oil prices rose on Monday, recovering from a seven-day losing streak as investors hunted for bargains and a softer dollar lent support, though persistent anxiety over surging cases of the Delta coronavirus variant kept sentiment cautious.
Brent crude futures climbed $1.16, or 1.8%, to $66.34 a barrel by 0430 GMT, after hitting the lowest level since May 21 of $64.60 earlier in the session. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for October rose $1.07, or 1.7%, to $63.21 a barrel, recovering from $61.74, the lowest since May 21, touched in Asia’s early trade.
Both benchmarks marked their biggest week of losses in more than nine months last week – Brent slid about 8% and WTI fell about 9% – as markets braced for weakened fuel demand worldwide due to the surge in the pandemic.
“Oil prices took a breather (on Monday) after their steep drops last week,” said Kazuhiko Saito, chief analyst at Fujitomi Securities Co Ltd. “We expect to see more adjustments this week, but the market sentiment will likely remain bearish with growing concerns over slower fuel demand worldwide,” he added.
