據3月14日路透社報道，周五石油價格接近每桶70美元，主要產油國的減產和對下半年需求增長的樂觀情緒支持下，布倫特原油價格下跌41美分，至每桶69.22美元，跌幅0.6%。

美國西德克薩斯中質原油也下跌41美分，至每桶65.61美元。

布倫特原油和美國原油價格周一觸及13個月高位，連續7周上漲，本周基本持平。

伊利諾伊州加里納的里特布施和 Associates總裁吉姆?里特布希表示：“白宮救助計劃和新冠肺炎疫苗積極報道，繼續提高對石油等高風險資產的需求。”

歐佩克預計今年石油需求將在下半年出現更強勁的增加。歐佩克、俄羅斯及其盟友上周決定維持產量限制幾乎不變。

根據能源服務公司貝克休斯的數據，美國鉆井公司也在減產，自去年11月以來首次削減了石油和天然氣鉆井平臺的數量。

PVM分析師表示：“今年下半年強于預期的反彈意味著，全球經濟和石油需求前景正在擺脫新冠肺炎疫情帶來的影響。”加拿大皇家銀行資本分析師表示，夏季汽油價格基本面是近10年來最樂觀的。

美國是全球最大的石油消費國，上周美國汽油庫存大幅減少，因德克薩斯州的冬季暴風雪擾亂了煉油生產。

摩根大通分析師預計，油價持續走高將鼓勵美國生產商增加產量，這最終可能打壓油價。他們預計，今年美國平均石油日產量為1,136萬桶，而2020年為1,320萬桶。

本周早些時候，政府下調了2021年美國原油產量的預期產量。原油日產量減少16萬桶至1,115萬桶，降幅小于此前預估的下降29萬桶。

馮于榮 摘譯自 路透社

原文如下：

Oil settles near $70/bbl on hopes of recovering demand

Oil settled near $70 a barrel on Friday, supported by production cuts by major oil producers and optimism about a demand recovery in the second half of the year.

Benchmark Brent settled down 41 cents, or 0.6%, to $69.22 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude also ended down 41 cents to $65.61 a barrel.

Brent and U.S. crude ended the week roughly flat after prices touched a 13-month high on Monday, following seven straight weeks of gains.

“Demand for risky assets such as oil continues to be buoyed by the White House relief package and an almost daily flow of optimistic vaccine headlines,” said Jim Ritterbusch, president of Ritterbusch and Associates in Galena, Illinois.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries forecast a stronger oil demand recovery this year, weighted to the second half. OPEC, Russia and its allies decided last week to maintain its output curbs almost unchanged.

U.S. drillers are also holding back, cutting the number of oil and natural gas rigs operating for the first time since November, according to data from energy services firm Baker Hughes Co.

“The stronger-than-expected rebound in the second half of this year implies that the global economy and hence oil demand outlook is close to shaking off its COVID woes,” PVM analysts said.

RBC Capital analysts said the fundamentals for summer gasoline was the most bullish in nearly a decade.

The United States, world’s largest oil consumer, saw a big draw on U.S. gasoline stocks last week as the winter storm in Texas disrupted refining output.

Sustained higher oil prices are expected to encourage U.S. producers to increase output, which could eventually weigh on prices, JPMorgan analysts wrote.

JPMorgan expects U.S. oil output to average 11.36 million barrels per day this year compared with 11.32 million bpd in 2020.

Earlier this week, the government revised down 2021’s decline expected in U.S. crude production. Output is seen falling 160,000 bpd to 11.15 million bpd, a smaller decrease than its previous monthly forecast for a 290,000-bpd drop.