Singapore – Oil prices dipped on Monday as global producers are expected to maintain output at a meeting this week and investors are wary of a US Federal Reserve meeting that might cause market volatility, Reuters reported.
Brent crude futures were down 74 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $85.92 a barrel at 0710 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate crude was down 61 cents, or 0.8%, to $79.07 a barrel.
The US central bank is expected to raise interest rates by at least 25 basis points in its policy meeting on January 31-February1, increasing concerns that the Fed’s extended increases in borrowing costs will choke fuel demand growth in the US.
Oil prices “are likely being weighed down by potential interest rate hikes in the upcoming Fed meeting,” Serena Huang, head of APAC analysis at Vortexa, said in an email to Reuters .
When the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, including Russia, convene virtually on February 1, they are unlikely to change their existing oil supply strategy.