Oil prices rise after US law passed, Chinese exports rise

TOKYO, November 8 (Reuters) – Oil prices rose on Monday amid positive signs of global economic growth, supporting energy demand, while Saudi Arabia’s state-owned producer Aramco raised the official selling price of its crude oil.

Brent oil was up 84 cents or 1% to $ 83.58 a barrel by 0609 GMT, after falling nearly 2% last week. US oil rose 95 cents or 1.2 percent to $ 82.22, after falling nearly 3 percent until Friday.

On Saturday, President Joe Biden welcomed Congress’ decision on a long-overdue $ 1 trillion infrastructure bill, which could increase growth and demand for fuel. read more

China’s export growth slowed in October, but beat forecasts, bolstered by rising global demand ahead of winter holidays and improvements in coronavirus-affected supply chains. read more

“We can expect global GDP growth to keep up with energy demand,” said Avtar Sandu, senior commodity chief at Phillip Futures in Singpaore, adding “prices could rise higher on tight ground conditions.”

Late Friday, Saudi Arabia also raised the price of its benchmark oil for customers in Asia in December, which exceeded market expectations. read more

The move by Aramco suggests that “demand remains strong” as the OPEC producer and other major oil exporters keep the reins on supply, ANZ Research said in a note.

Demand for aviation fuel seems to be declining as more authorities make flights easier with reduced coronavirus restrictions. read more

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies such as Russia, collectively known as OPEC +, last week agreed to stick to their plan to increase oil production by 400,000 barrels per day from December.

US President Joe Biden called on OPEC + to produce more barrels to curb rising prices and said on Saturday that his administration has “other tools” to deal with the higher oil price. read more

Elsewhere, China’s oil imports fell to a three-year low in October, with state-owned refineries holding back purchases due to higher prices, while independent refineries were restricted by limited quotas to bring in crude oil. read more

Reporting by Aaron Sheldrick; editing by Richard Pullin

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