By Sibel Morrow
Oil prices continued their weekly rally on Tuesday as investors priced in an anticipated supply tightness in the fourth quarter of the year, triggered by voluntary cuts by Saudi Arabia and Russia.
International benchmark crude Brent traded at $94.84 per barrel at 11.03 a.m. local time (0803GMT), a 0.43% gain from the closing price of $94.43 a barrel in the previous trading session on Monday.
The American benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) traded at the same time at $91.26 per barrel, up 0.75% from the previous session's close of $90.58 per barrel.
Brent is currently hovering around $95 a barrel as supply cuts by Saudi Arabia and Russia, the two biggest producers in the OPEC+ group, could exacerbate the supply deficit expected this year and push oil prices higher.
Eyes are now on China’s industrial data to signal the demand trajectory of the world’s largest oil importer.
If Chinese demand continues to recover in the fourth quarter, the demand and supply gap will adjust in favor of higher oil prices.
Another key piece of data that investors are watching this week is US inventories, which will reflect the US short-term demand outlook. If US stockpiles decline, prices are expected to further rise.