據路透社9月21日報道，因部分石油生產可能恢復，加上病例增加也加劇了對全球需求的擔憂，油價周一下跌。

格林尼治標準時間06：45，布倫特原油價格下跌33美分，跌幅為0.8%，至每桶42.82美元。美國原油價格下跌38美分，跌幅為0.9%，至每桶40.73美元。

Sharara油田的兩名工程師表示，該油田的工人已經重新開始作業。此前，該油田所在國國家石油公司宣布部分解除不可抗力，但目前仍不清楚何時可能恢復生產。

澳新銀行(ANZ)分析師周一在一份報告中表示:“市場承受不起更多原油沖擊。”目前，與冠狀病毒相關的限制措施侵蝕了需求。據路透社統計，全球共有超過3078萬人感染新型冠狀病毒，954843人死亡，導致旅游和商業活動癱瘓。

OANDA高級市場分析師Edward Moya稱："由于病毒在法國、西班牙和英國激增，加之美國似乎在秋冬兩季至少會再經歷一個周期的影響，人們很難對原油需求的回升感到樂觀。即使能源市場看不到部分石油的生產恢復，或者颶風消散，油價也無法擺脫需求萎縮的前景。”

與此同時，荷蘭皇家殼牌公司表示，該公司暫停了部分石油生產，并開始疏散美國墨西哥灣一個平臺上的工人。

美國國家颶風中心表示，熱帶風暴貝塔預計將給德克薩斯州和路易斯安那州部分沿海地區帶來1英尺(30厘米)的降雨，今年大西洋颶風季節的第23個被命名的風暴將于周一晚上登陸。

受莎莉颶風影響，上周六，美國墨西哥灣約17%的石油生產和近13%的天然氣生產暫停作業。目前，石油和天然氣生產商已于周末開始漸漸恢復海上作業。

王佳晶 摘譯自 路透社

原文如下：

Oil prices slip on potential return of Libyan output; Gulf storm supports

Oil prices fell on Monday on the potential return of partial output as rising coronavirus cases also added to worries about global demand, although a tropical storm heading for the U.S. Gulf of Mexico limited losses.

Brent crude was down 33 cents, or 0.8%, at $42.82 a barrel by 0645 GMT, while U.S. crude was down 38 cents, or 0.9%, to $40.73 a barrel.

Workers atthe major Sharara field have restarted operations, two engineers working there said, after National Oil Corporation announced a partial lifting of force majeure. But it was still unclear when production might restart.

“The market can ill afford more crude hitting the market,” ANZ analysts said in a note on Monday, at a time when coronavirus-related curbs have eroded demand.

More than 30.78 million people have been infected by the novel coronavirus and 954,843 have died globally, a Reuters tally shows, paralysing travel and business activity.

“It is hard to get excited about a pickup in crude demand as the virus is surging in France, Spain, and the UK, along with concerns the U.S. appears poised for at least one more cycle in the fall and winter,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA.

“Even if energy markets don’t see theproduction return or if hurricane season eases, oil prices can’t shake off the dwindling demand outlook.”

Meanwhile, Royal Dutch Shell Plc halted some oil production and began evacuating workers from a U.S. Gulf of Mexico platform, the company said on Saturday.

Tropical Storm Beta was predicted to bring 1 foot (30 centimetres) of rain to parts of coastal Texas and Louisiana as the 23rd named storm of this year’s Atlantic hurricane season moves ashore on Monday night, the National Hurricane Center said.

Oil and gas producers had been restarting their offshore operations over the weekend after being disrupted by Hurricane Sally. Some 17% of U.S. Gulf of Mexico offshore oil production and nearly 13% of natural gas output went offline on Saturday in the face of Sally’s waves and winds.