oil

Futures in New York traded near US$54 ($71.87) a barrel after rising 2.6% on Feb 1.

The analysts have upped their Brent crude oil price forecast for 2021 to US$55 to US$60 ($72.98 to $79.62) on bullish trends.

The contract sums are not disclosed, due to the confidentiality of the agreements signed with Shell.

Brent crude LCOc1 slipped on the Trump news and was down $1.12, or 2.7%, at $39.81 a barrel by 0710 GMT.

Oil jumped to a five-month high alongside a surge in US equities, settling at US$42.89 for West Texas Intermediate

Oil prices dipped on Monday, weighed down by the prospect that a rise in the pace of coronavirus infections could derail a recovery in fuel demand.

Malaysia’s CIMB Bank Bhd. has accused Singapore-based Hontop Energy of “suspicious” oil deals as it seeks a restructuring of the trader and to recover funds lent to the group in the latest legal skirmish in the trading hub.

ZenRock Commodities Trading Pte Ltd. is among a handful of trading houses in the spotlight after oil’s historic plunge earlier this year.

Commodity investors will get critical insights into energy, metals and crop markets this week against a backdrop of better-than-expected economic data and countervailing concern over the jump in coronavirus infections.

For an insight into Asia’s oil demand recovery and the health of global energy markets, look no further than the fluctuating volumes and shifting composition of the hoard of crude and fuel floating off Singapore.