Global| Sep 17 2019U.S. Crude Oil Prices Surge after Attack
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
After an attack on a Saudi Arabian oil facility on Sunday, the price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil strengthened to $62.90 per barrel yesterday from $54.85 on Friday. The outsized jump placed the price of crude oil slightly [...]
After an attack on a Saudi Arabian oil facility on Sunday, the price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil strengthened to $62.90 per barrel yesterday from $54.85 on Friday. The outsized jump placed the price of crude oil slightly below the high of $63.86 per barrel reached in April. The price of Brent crude oil jumped to $68.79 per barrel yesterday from $61.24 averaged last week. Last week, the price of WTI crude oil had increased to an average $56.19 per barrel (-18.5% y/y) from $55.73 in the previous week.
In the week ended September 16, the U.S. pump price for gasoline held steady at $2.55 per gallon (-10.2% y/y). Haver Analytics adjusts these price figures for seasonal variation. The seasonally adjusted price increased to $2.43 per gallon from $2.41 in the previous week.
The price of natural gas jumped to $2.64 per mmbtu (-9.9% y/y) in the week ended September 13 from $2.46/mmbtu in the previous week. This was the highest price since late-May and the fifth consecutive weekly increase. Yesterday, the price rose to $2.75 per mmbtu.
For the four-weeks ending September 6, U.S. gasoline demand edged 0.2% higher y/y. Total petroleum product demand rose 0.4% y/y. U.S. gasoline inventories fell 3.0% y/y while inventories of all petroleum products increased 2.3% y/y. Crude oil input to U.S. refineries fell 1.4% y/y.
These data are reported by the U.S. Department of Energy. The price data can be found in Haver's WEEKLY and DAILY databases. More detail on prices, demand, production and inventories, including regional breakdowns, are in OILWKLY.
| Weekly Energy Prices | 9/16/2010 | 9/9/2019 | 9/2/2019 | Y/Y % | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Gasoline ($ per Gallon Regular, Monday Price, End of Period) | 2.55 | 2.55 | 2.56 | -10.2 | 2.27 | 2.47 | 2.31 |
| Light Sweet Crude Oil, WTI ($ per bbl, Previous Week's Average) | 56.19 | 55.73 | 55.22 | -18.5 | 64.95 | 50.87 | 43.22 |
| Natural Gas ($/mmbtu, LA, Previous Week's Average) | 2.64 | 2.46 | 2.28 | -9.9 | 3.18 | 2.99 | 2.51 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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