Oil rises ahead of Joe Biden’s inauguartion

Oil prices extended gains on Wednesday ahead of the inauguration of Joe Biden as the President of United States, and amid hopes that incoming US administration will approve the stimulus package, in turn boosting economy during the coronavirus pandemic.

Meanwhile, OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo said he is “cautiously optimistic” the oil market will recover this year from a demand slump due to the pandemic.

Separately, the International Energy Agency on Tuesday, Jan. 19, lowered its forecast for global oil demand by 0.3 million barrels per day (bpd) for 2021, amid expectations that world oil demand will recover by 5.5 million bpd this year.

In terms of trading, international benchmark Brent crude was up 0.6% at $56.23 per barrel, at 9 am Makkah time.

WTI crude also rose 0.6% to $53.29 a barrel.