Crude oil price rises by 6% to $41

The international oil benchmark, Brent crude, surged by six per cent on Monday after doctors said the United States President Donald Trump could soon be discharged from the hospital where he was being treated for COVID-19.

The upturn in oil prices comes as six Norwegian offshore oil and gas fields were shut as more workers joined a strike, according to Reuters.

Brent, against which Nigerian oil is priced, rose by $2.12 to $41.39 per barrel as of 8:05pm Nigerian time on Monday.

“A lot of people thought last week’s selloff was overdone. There were a lot of assumptions,” said Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.

On Friday, prices slumped more than four per cent following Trump’s diagnosis.

Trump’s medical condition remained unclear as he began a fourth day at the military hospital where he was being treated, but his doctors said he could be discharged on Monday.

This improved market sentiment.

Hopes for a US stimulus package to counter the economic impacts of the pandemic also supported prices.

White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said there was still potential to reach agreement with US lawmakers on more economic relief during the coronavirus pandemic.