Forex Marketz Daily Forex News – Fully Markets Update
Crude oil futures contracts have seen a bit of a recovery and continued to add to gains made during the overnight North American trade session.
Traders are monitoring easing lock down restrictions in Europe and the United States as global economies start to reopen, slowly. Demand for oil is still very low and there is a global supply glut capping gains. Also, mounting political tensions between China and the U.S. are sapping risk appetite.
As of 1:10 am GMT, the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures contract was up 8.2 percent near a three week high price at $21.94 per barrel.
The international Brent crude oil futures contract added 4.1 percent to trade at $28.32 per barrel. This contract has risen for six days in a row.
Both of these oil futures contracts added nearly three percent on Monday.
Crude Oil Traders Monitor easing of Lockdown Restrictions
Traders are looking for an increase in demand for oil as European countries and states in the United States start to reopen their economies. They are easing lockdown orders that have been in place since March due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
These countries include Italy, Spain and Portugal in Europe. India and Thailand are also easing restrictions and allowing businesses to reopen slowly. These include construction sites, parks, libraries and factories.
Political Tensions Mount between China and the U.S.
The U.S. has accused China of releasing the Covid-19 virus from a lab in Wuhan. President Donald Trump has also warned that China could face sanctions, which in turn, could derail the fragile trade war cease-fire.
These renewed geopolitical tensions are supporting safe haven asset classes, like gold and the U.S. dollar as risk appetite starts to switch back off.
President Donald Trump and his Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, have blamed China for releasing the Covid-19 pandemic “accidently” and for understating the damage being done.
The Secretary of State has said that there is a significant amount of evidence” that Covid-19 came from a lab located in Wuhan. This was the originating area of the coronavirus pandemic.
The World Health Organization (WHO), however, has said that there is no proof of the coronavirus being made in a laboratory. The WHO has also said that the United States Government has offered no evidence to support their accusations.
