With the markets waiting for announcement by the US Federal Reserve on interest rate revision later in the day, crude oil futures traded marginally higher on major exchanges on Wednesday morning.

At 9.53 am on Wednesday, August Brent oil futures were at $74.39, up by 0.13 per cent, and July crude oil futures on WTI were at $69.44, up by 0.03 per cent.

June crude oil futures were trading at ₹5717 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) against the previous close of ₹5729, down by 0.21 per cent, and July futures were trading at ₹5757 as against the previous close of ₹5769, down by 0.21 per cent.

Also read: Pakistan pays for Russian crude oil shipment in Chinese currency

OPEC demand forecast

Market analysts feel that there is a scope for a pause in interest rate hikes by the US Fed Reserve as the US inflation data softened a bit. The US consumer price index was at 4 per cent in May against 4.9 per cent in April, and 5 per cent in March. Any increase in the interest rate will make commodities, such as crude oil, costlier, impacting its demand in the global market.

Meanwhile, the monthly oil market report by OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) forecast that the global oil demand is expected to grow by 2.4 million barrels a day in the second half of 2023.

The report said the US and the Eurozone have experienced steady economic growth this year so far, and India, Brazil and Russia have seen economic growths that clearly surpassed expectations. The positive effects of China’s reopening have continued to support global economic growth, it said.

Also read: India’s long-term OPEC+ headache

However, the report noted that the global economic growth in the second half of 2023 continues navigating through uncertainties, including elevated key policy rates, persistently high core inflation, and a continued tight labour market. Moreover, it is still unclear how the geopolitical conflict in Eastern Europe will be resolved, it said.

Market reports said there has been a build in the crude oil inventories in the US for the week ending June 9. Citing the American Petroleum Institute, the reports said there was crude oil inventory increase of 1.024 million barrels for the week ending June 9 against a decline of 1.71 million barrels in the previous week. The inventory build indicated a decline in the demand for the commodity in the US market.

However, the official data from US EIA (Energy Information Administration) is expected later in the day.

Also read: OMCs marketing margins expand in Q1 FY24, but likely to moderate in Q2 FY24

Turmeric, dhania rise

June zinc futures were trading at ₹217.15 on MCX against the previous close of ₹214.90, up by 1.05 per cent.

On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), June turmeric (farmer polished) contracts were trading at ₹7,806 against the previous close of ₹7,672, up by 1.75 per cent.

June dhaniya futures were trading at ₹5,926 on NCDEX against the previous close of ₹5,898, up by 0.47 per cent.

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