Daily Times

Crude oil prices lowered on Thursday, as oil markets have been under pressure over expectations the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates higher for longer. As of 1225 hours GMT, Brent, the international benchmark for two-thirds of the world’s oil, shed $0.47 (-0.56 percent) to reach $83.13 a barrel. Similarly, the West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the main oil benchmark for North America, went down by $0.36 (-0.45 percent) to $78.87 a barrel. Both benchmarks are headed for monthly losses, with Brent futures on track for a decline of more than 5 percent from last month, while WTI was poised for a slide of over 3 percent.

On the other hand, the price of Arab Light decreased by $0.76 (-0.87 percent) to reach $86.42 a barrel. Similarly, the price of Russian Sokol decreased by $0.85 (-1.08 percent) to $77.85 a barrel. On the other hand, the price for Opec Basket increased by $2.08 (+2.54 percent) to $84.00 a barrel.

Brent lost about 2 percent last week and WTI nearly 3 percent after the US Federal Reserve minutes showed some officials would be willing to raise interest rates further if it were deemed necessary to control stubbornly high inflation. The US Consumer Price Index inflation rose 3.4 percent on an annual basis in April, the Labour Department said this month.