Brent crude futures remained steady in early Asian trading hours following the first U.S. interest rate cut since 2020.
As of 12:00 Beijing time, the November contract price of Brent crude oil was $73.70 per barrel, up 5 cents from the settlement price on September 18. The October contract price of crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange was $70.83 per barrel, down 8 cents from the previous trading day.
The U.S. Federal Reserve announced on September 18 that it would cut its target interest rate by 50 basis points, the first rate cut since 2020, with an additional 50 basis point cut expected by the end of 2024. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) of the Federal Reserve lowered the federal funds rate from the range of 5.25-5.5% to 4.75-5%, ending the interest rate level maintained since July 2023. Previously, the Federal Reserve implemented the most aggressive rate hike in 40 years to curb inflation that peaked at 9.1% in mid-2022.
Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed that U.S. crude oil inventories fell by 1.6 million barrels last week due to increased exports and reduced imports. As of the week ending September 13, U.S. crude oil inventories fell to 417.5 million barrels, down about 900,000 barrels from the previous week, the eighth decline in 10 consecutive weeks.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a tender to purchase up to 6 million barrels of sour crude oil between February and May to replenish the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve in Louisiana. If the purchase is successful, it will be the largest single purchase since the Biden administration launched its crude oil purchase plan in early 2023.
The Lebanese National News Agency reported that after thousands of electronic pagers exploded on September 17, killing at least 12 people and injuring more than 3,000 people, a second wave of explosions involving "wireless devices" occurred in the country on September 18. The Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said that the new round of explosions has caused 9 deaths and more than 300 injuries.
No country or group has claimed responsibility for the blast, but Lebanese militia Hezbollah, whose members appear to have been the main target of the attack, has blamed Israel. Hezbollah and Israeli forces have been engaged in fighting for nearly a year since the Gaza conflict began.
(The above content comes from the latest views of Argus, an independent international energy and commodity price assessment agency)
The article is forwarded from: Jinshi Data
