Brent price nears $73/b

Crude oil prices hit a low yesterday ($71.51/bbl for Brent) after Saudi Arabia cut the price of its exports to Asian customers. Then, they recovered in a context still marked by the damage inflicted by Hurricane Ida on the oil complex in the Gulf of Mexico: 80% of the region’s production remains absent. The upward trend is supported by the surprise rebound in China’s foreign trade in August, although the significance of these figures is questionable (see Daily Eco). More specifically, crude oil imports also seem to be heavily dependent on government quotas and weather conditions (there was a typhoon in July), without this really reflecting the state of demand.