Brent oil price holds at $108 as spread to WTI crude futures disappears

Brent oil futures open today’s session holding out around $108 a barrel, in part due to a weaker US dollar while the spread between ICE European and US NYMEX crude futures contracts disappears for the first time since way back in 2010.

Latest Brent Oil Price

In London, ICE Brent crude oil futures for September 2013 delivery was trading at $108.55 a barrel, 08:20 GMT this morning on the ICE Futures Exchange, while NYMEX WTI oil stood at $108.28.

Oil Prices 15 Percent Surge Higher

Recent declines in US crude oil supplies together with political turmoil in Egypt have helped oil prices advance nearly 15 percent over the past four weeks.

“Improving fundamentals, less concern about the Federal Reserve tapering and a still tense geopolitical situation have boosted oil prices in recent weeks, but the improvement may not last. We expect the move up in oil prices to run out of steam, as weak demand caps the upside, and we forecast Brent crude to average around $107 a barrel in the third quarter, slightly below currently prevailing levels.” wrote Barclays commodities analysts late last Friday.

Meanwhile, Capital Economics forecasts oil prices to edge back down to about $85 per barrel by the end of 2015, a trend likely to mean fiscal positions could “worsen substantially” it says.

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Brent oil price holds at $108 as spread to WTI crude futures disappears