MUSCAT: The official selling price of Omani crude oil for delivery in January has seen a notable increase, rising to $72.21 per barrel, marking a $1.71 rise from the previous day's price of $70.50.
In comparison, the average monthly selling price for Omani crude oil in November stood at $73.49, a decrease of $4.50 from the previous month.
Conversely, global oil prices experienced a slight downward trend on Tuesday, attributed to the partial reopening of Norway's Johan Sverdrup oilfield, which is the largest in Western Europe, following an interruption due to a power outage.
By the time the markets opened at 9:15 AM GMT, the price of Brent crude futures had fallen by 45 cents (0.6%) to $72.85 per barrel, while the price of US West Texas Intermediate crude fell by 46 cents (0.7%) to $68.70 per barrel.
Giovanni Staunovo, an analyst at UBS, highlighted that the restart of the Johan Sverdrup field, in conjunction with a strengthening US dollar, played a significant role in the downward pressure on oil prices. A stronger dollar typically increases the cost of commodities for buyers using different currencies, thereby exerting downward pressure on oil prices.
Nonetheless, the market was somewhat stabilized by the ongoing decrease in production from Kazakhstan's Tengiz oilfield, which is experiencing a reduction of 28–30% due to maintenance work. The completion of these repairs is anticipated to be by the weekend, as per the statements from Kazakhstan’s energy ministry.
