Oil prices will rise to $90 per barrel, the forecast says

The oil market could become scarce as russia cuts supply and China increases consumption.

Reuters conducted a survey of 49 economists regarding the situation on the oil market. So, experts forecast that Brent LCOc1 will average $89.23 a barrel this year, below the January consensus of $90.49, but still above the current price of around $83. Some analysts predict that Brent prices will rise above $90 per barrel in the second half of the year.

The average price of US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) CLc1 is forecast to be $83.94 per barrel in 2023, down from $85.40 the previous month.

We will remind you that this month, russia is reducing oil production by 500,000 barrels per day and reducing the export of raw materials from its western ports to 25% due to the strengthening of western sanctions. At the same time, the terrorist country is trying to redirect oil supplies to Asian countries, in particular, to China and India.

China accounts for almost half of this year’s growth in global oil demand — up to 2 million barrels, according to estimates by the International Energy Agency.

Over the past two months, Chinese refiner Sinopec has accepted at least 17 cargoes of Upper Zakum crude oil from the United Arab Emirates from the spot market, along with several cargoes of crude oil from other Middle Eastern countries.

Saudi Arabia is expected to raise prices for Asian buyers as early as April amid rising Chinese demand. So, Saudi Aramco can raise prices for the Arab Light grade by about 40 cents to $2.40 a barrel. Earlier, Saudi Arabia had already raised March Arab Light prices to Asia, the first price increase in six months. An increase for the second month in a row would indicate sustained market confidence in demand growth.