Oil prices pushed modestly higher on Wednesday, extending the previous session’s gains as supply concerns lingered following weather-related disruptions in the United States, alongside output issues in Kazakhstan. A softer U.S. dollar and ongoing tensions in the Middle East also provided support.
By 09:00 GMT, Brent crude futures were up 23 cents, or 0.3%, at $67.80 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 32 cents, or 0.5%, to $62.71. Both benchmarks advanced by around 3% on Tuesday.
The U.S. dollar continued to trade near four-year lows against a basket of major currencies, making dollar-priced commodities such as oil more attractive to buyers using other currencies.
Supply disruptions underpin market
On the supply side, analysts and traders estimate that U.S. crude producers lost as much as 2 million barrels per day — roughly 15% of national output — over the weekend after a severe winter storm disrupted production and exports.
Losses in Kazakhstan have also helped underpin prices, although the OPEC+ producer has said output at the giant Tengiz field is expected to recover gradually within about a week. Meanwhile, the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), which transports roughly 80% of Kazakhstan’s oil exports, has restored full loading capacity at its Black Sea terminal after maintenance work at one of its three mooring points, which had been damaged by drone strikes, according to sources.
Middle East risks remain in focus
Geopolitical risks in the Middle East continued to hang over the market. Two U.S. officials told Reuters on Monday that a U.S. aircraft carrier and accompanying warships have arrived in the region, strengthening President Donald Trump’s ability to defend U.S. forces or potentially carry out military action against Iran.
ANZ analysts said this deployment has raised the possibility that Trump could follow through on threats to target Iran’s senior leadership in response to a violent crackdown on nationwide protests.
Looking ahead, the OPEC+ alliance — which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and other partners — is expected to maintain its pause on output increases for March at a meeting scheduled for February 1, according to three OPEC+ delegates.
On the demand and inventory front, an extended Reuters poll on Tuesday suggested that U.S. crude oil and gasoline inventories likely rose in the week to January 23, while distillate stocks were expected to fall. However, market sources citing data from the American Petroleum Institute said crude and gasoline stocks declined last week, while distillate inventories increased. Official government data is due later at 15:30 GMT.