Early on Tuesday, crude oil prices rose after the overnight losses as the latest tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico lost strength, but the resurging cases of coronavirus still concerning in its relation to demand.
At 02.24 GMT, Brent crude oil futures edged up by 0.3% or 13 cents to USD41.57/barrel. The US WTI October futures slimbed by 0.7% or 26 cents while the more active November contract inched up by 0.4% or 15 cents to USD39.69/barrel.
Following the easing of Tropical Storm Beta, Texas refineries started to open in spite of the forecasts of heavy flooding, mitigating the worries about US refinery demand for feedstock.
However, the market is still concerned about oil demand anywhere else around the world, such as the UK, where the cases of coronavirus are resurging, moreover with winter coming. Some governments have reimposed fresh restrictions to limit the spread of the virus, which would damage demand.
On a related note, a preliminary Reuters poll seen US crude and gasoline inventories to fall last week. Stockpiles of distillates, on the other hand, are estimated to climb.
