English
Oil rises 2% after Assad ousted, China eases monetary policy
Oil prices rose about 2% on Monday, as geopolitical risks rose after the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and China, the world's biggest oil importer, announced its first step toward easing monetary policy since 2010.
Brent crude futures gained $1.34, or 1.9%, to $72.46 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose $1.5, or 2.23%, to $68.70 a barrel.
Syrian opposition forces announced on state television on Sunday the ouster of the president, ending 50 years of rule by the Assad family, after a lightning attack that raised fears of a new wave of unrest in the Middle East.
In an early sign of turmoil in the oil market, ship tracking data showed a tanker carrying Iranian oil to Syria diverted its course in the Red Sea away from its original destination.
On the other hand, China will adopt a moderate easing of monetary policy, according to an official statement from a meeting of senior Communist Party officials, a term Beijing last used in 2010 when it sought to support the recovery from the global financial crisis.
Slowing growth in China was a factor behind the OPEC+ alliance’s decision last week to postpone plans to increase production until April.
Oil prices fell last week, with Brent crude falling more than 2.5%, while West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.2%. This comes amid expectations that oil supply will increase next year due to weak demand, despite the OPEC+ group’s decision to postpone the increase in production and extend the production cuts until the end of 2026.
Commenting on the shift in oil prices, Tomomichi Akuta, an economist at Mitsubishi UFJ Research & Consulting, told Reuters: “Developments in Syria have added more political uncertainty in the Middle East, providing some support to the market.”
