
Oil rises as strong demand outweighs larger-than-expected OPEC+ output hike
Brent crude futures rose 79 cents, or 1.2 per cent, to $69.08 by 02:05 p.m. ET (18:05 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $67.29, up 29 cents, or 0.4 per cent. The benchmarks had fallen to $67.22 and $65.40, respectively, earlier in the session.
"The supply picture definitely looks to be elevating, however, the stronger demand is remaining above expectations as well," Dennis Kissler, senior vice president of trading at BOK Financial.
A record number of Americans had been set to travel for the Fourth of July holiday by road and air, travel industry statistics showed.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies, a group known as OPEC+, agreed on Saturday to raise production by 548,000 barrels per day in August, more than the 411,000-bpd hikes they made for the earlier three months.
The OPEC+ decision will bring nearly 80 per cent of the 2.2 million-bpd voluntary cuts from eight OPEC producers back into the market, RBC Capital analysts, led by Helima Croft, said in a note.
However, the actual output increase has been smaller than planned so far and most of the supply has been from Saudi Arabia, analysts said.
In a show of confidence about oil demand, Saudi Arabia on Sunday raised the August price for its flagship Arab Light crude to a four-month high for Asia.
Goldman analysts expect OPEC+ to announce a final 550,000-bpd increase for September at the next meeting on August 3.
Oil had also come under pressure as U.S. officials flagged a delay regarding when tariffs would begin, but failed to provide details on changes to the rates that will be imposed. Investors are worried that higher tariffs could slow economic activity and oil demand.
The United States will make several trade announcements in the next 48 hours, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday, adding that his inbox was full of last-ditch offers from countries to clinch a tariff deal before a July 9 deadline.
"Although US trade policy is still unfolding, the U.S. is extending deadlines and backing away from punitive tariffs, helping to lift some of the demand gloom in place since April," said Jeffrey McGee, managing director of advisory firm Makai Marine Advisors.
Meanwhile, geopolitical uncertainties continued. Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said on Monday that a cargo ship they struck with gunfire, rockets and explosive-laden remote-controlled boats had sunk in the Red Sea, after their first known attack on the high seas this year.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is due to meet with Trump at the White House on Monday, while Israeli officials hold indirect talks with Hamas aimed at reaching a U.S.-brokered Gaza ceasefire and hostage-release deal.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said he believes Iran can resolve its differences with the United States through dialogue, but trust would be an issue after U.S. and Israeli attacks on his country, according to an interview released on Monday.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


CNA
8 hours ago
- CNA
Clark calls for more pay as WNBA labor talks intensify
INDIANAPOLIS :Indiana Fever sensation Caitlin Clark called for better pay in the WNBA on Saturday as labor negotiations between the league and players intensify, while Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said she was optimistic about their latest talks. Thousands of fans wearing "Clark" jerseys packed the Gainbridge Fieldhouse for the sold-out All-Star Game on Saturday, while the wildly popular Rookie of the Year was forced to sit out after sustaining a groin injury earlier in the week. Clark was an omnipresent figure in Indianapolis in the lead-up, despite not being able to play, as her face graced ads for Nike, Wilson and Gatorade that were plastered across the city center. Asked how those brand deals stacked against her league salary, Clark responded: "That's a good question." "That's where we're really fortunate is that we have those other deals. I think that's one of the things that we're in the room fighting for," Clark told reporters. "We should be paid more. Hopefully that's the case moving forward as the league continues to grow. I think it's something that's probably the most important thing that we are in the room advocating about." The Women's National Basketball Players Association and the league met on Thursday in Indianapolis to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement after the players voted to opt out of their current deal at the end of the season. The union said after the meeting that the two sides were far apart on several issues and players were seen warming up for Saturday's game wearing shirts that read "Pay Us What You Owe Us." Commissioner Cathy Engelbert struck a different tone with reporters, saying she felt the meeting with players had been productive. "(I'm) really optimistic that we'll get something done, that it'll be transformational, and that next year at All-Star, we'll be talking about how great everything is. But obviously, there's a lot of hard work to be done on both sides," she said. Engelbert, who also oversaw the league when the last deal was struck in January 2020, has been at the helm during a period of rapid growth for the WNBA, with TV ratings and attendance climbing rapidly. "We want the same things as the players," she told reporters. "We want to significantly increase their salary and benefits while balancing with our owners their ability to have a path of profitability."


CNA
11 hours ago
- CNA
Astronomer CEO Andy Byron resigns after controversy over Coldplay concert video
The IT company CEO captured in a widely circulated video showing him embracing an employee at a Coldplay concert has resigned. Andy Byron resigned from his job as CEO of Cincinnati-based Astronomer Inc, according to a statement posted on LinkedIn by the company on Saturday (Jul 19). 'Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met,' the company said in its post on LinkedIn. The move comes a day after the company said that Byron had been placed on leave and the board of directors had launched a formal investigation into the jumbotron incident, which went viral. A company spokesman later confirmed in a statement to AP that it was Byron and Astronomer chief people officer Kristin Cabot in the video. The short video clip shows Byron and Cabot as captured on the jumbotron at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, during a Coldplay concert on Wednesday. Lead singer Chris Martin had asked the cameras to scan the crowd for his Jumbotron Song when he sings a few lines about the people the camera lands on. 'Either they're having an affair or they're just very shy,' he joked. Internet sleuths identified the man as the chief executive officer of a US-based company and the woman as its chief people officer. Pete DeJoy, Astronomer's cofounder and chief product officer, has been tapped as interim CEO while the company searches for Byron's successor. CONCERT VENUES It's easy to miss but most concert venues have signs informing the audience that they could be filmed during the event. It is common practice, especially when bands like to use performances for music videos or concert films. The venue in this case, Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, also has a privacy policy online which states: 'When you visit our location or attend or participate in an event at our location, we may capture your image, voice and/or likeness, including through the use of CCTV cameras and/or when we film or photograph you in a public location.' 'They probably would have got away with it if they hadn't reacted,' said Alison Taylor, a clinical associate professor at New York University's Stern School of Business. Still, Taylor and others stressed how quickly such a video leads to an internet search to find the people involved and noted that it was important to remember that such 'doxing' isn't just reserved for famous people. Beyond someone simply spotting a familiar face and spreading the word, technological advances, such as the rising adoption of artificial intelligence, have made it easier and faster overall to find just about anyone in a viral video today. 'It's a little bit unsettling how easily we can be identified with biometrics, how our faces are online, how social media can track us – and how the internet has gone from being a place of interaction to a gigantic surveillance system,' said Mary Angela Bock, an associate professor in the University of Texas at Austin's School of Journalism and Media. 'When you think about it, we are being surveilled by our social media. They're tracking us in exchange for entertaining us.'


CNA
12 hours ago
- CNA
Astronomer CEO Andy Byron resigns after controversy over Coldplay concert video
NEW YORK: The IT company CEO captured in a widely circulated video showing him embracing an employee at a Coldplay concert has resigned. Andy Byron resigned from his job as CEO of Cincinnati-based Astronomer Inc, according to a statement posted on LinkedIn by the company on Saturday (Jul 19). 'Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met,' the company said in its post on LinkedIn. The move comes a day after the company said that Byron had been placed on leave and the board of directors had launched a formal investigation into the jumbotron incident, which went viral. A company spokesman later confirmed in a statement to AP that it was Byron and Astronomer chief people officer Kristin Cabot in the video. The short video clip shows Byron and Cabot as captured on the jumbotron at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, during a Coldplay concert on Wednesday. Lead singer Chris Martin had asked the cameras to scan the crowd for his Jumbotron Song, when he sings a few lines about the people the camera lands on. 'Either they're having an affair or they're just very shy,' he joked. Internet sleuths identified the man as the chief executive officer of a US-based company and the woman as its chief people officer. Pete DeJoy, Astronomer's cofounder and chief product officer, has been tapped as interim CEO while the company searches for Byron's successor. CONCERT VENUES It's easy to miss, but most concert venues have signs informing the audience that they could be filmed during the event. It is common practice, especially when bands like to use performances for music videos or concert films. The venue in this case, Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, also has a privacy policy online which states: 'When you visit our location or attend or participate in an event at our location, we may capture your image, voice and/or likeness, including through the use of CCTV cameras and/or when we film or photograph you in a public location.' 'They probably would have got away with it if they hadn't reacted,' said Alison Taylor, a clinical associate professor at New York University's Stern School of Business. Still, Taylor and others stressed how quickly such a video leads to an internet search to find the people involved and noted that it was important to remember that such 'doxing' isn't just reserved for famous people. Beyond someone simply spotting a familiar face and spreading the word, technological advances, such as the rising adoption of artificial intelligence, have made it easier and faster overall to find just about anyone in a viral video today. 'It's a little bit unsettling how easily we can be identified with biometrics, how our faces are online, how social media can track us – and how the internet has gone from being a place of interaction, to a gigantic surveillance system,' said Mary Angela Bock, an associate professor in the University of Texas at Austin's School of Journalism and Media.