Shafaq News / Crude oil prices increased on Wednesday due to supply concerns on the back of European Union’s proposal to ban energy imports from Russia.

At 11.25 am, the July contract of Brent futures on the Intercontinental Exchange was trading at $104.71 per barrel, higher by 2.20% from its previous close. The June contract of West Texas Intermediate rose 2.13% to $104.64 per barrel.

The rise in prices comes after a fall of around 9% in the last two trading sessions in line with a slump in other commodities and the equities market.

Sandeep Sawant Dessai, Research Associate Base Metals, Angel One Ltd said: “The EU’s proposed phased embargo on Russian oil, aided the rise in crude prices. However, the proposal needs a unanimous vote by EU members this week to pass."

Dessai noted that the drop in prices in the past two sessions came as the EU postponed its action on a proposed Russian oil embargo after Hungary objected to the decision and few other countries expressed concerns about the impact on their economies.

Further, the rising Covid-19 cases and prolonged lockdowns in China also raised concerns of a fall in demand from the major oil-importing country.

Despite volatility in the global markets, domestic price of petrol and diesel remained unchanged across metros in India. In Delhi, petrol is sold for ₹105.41 per litre, while the cost of diesel stands at ₹96.67 a litre.

Amid the continuing volatility in the global oil markets, energy minister of the United Arab Emirates, Suhail al-Mazrouei on Tuesday said that volatility in the crude oil markets is linked to factors outside the control of the OPEC+.

(Mint)