Benchmark oil prices are going up on Thursday due to continued geopolitical tensions in the Red Sea region. It is important to note that prices are also affected by a strong cold snap in some regions of the United States, which led to a reduction in oil production by 650-700 thousand barrels per day in North Dakota, one of the leading oil producing states in the country. According to the OPEC monthly report published on Wednesday, global oil demand is expected to increase by 2.2 million b/d in 2024, reaching 104.36 million b/d, and next year it is expected to increase by 1.8 million b/d, to 106.21 million b/d. In 2023, oil consumption has already increased by 2.5 million b/d and amounted to 102.11 million b/d. At the moment, the quotations of March futures for Brent crude oil on the London ICE Futures exchange are at $78.31 per barrel. Prices for WTI crude oil futures increased to $73.05 per barrel in February. It should be noted that the United States continues to strike targets used by the Houthis in Yemen to attack international shipping lanes. The forces of the US Central Command attacked 14 missile launchers that posed a threat to merchant ships and ships of the US Navy in the Red Sea region, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden.
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