Heading for a $100? – Oil Set for Strongest January in Decades as Market Tightens

Traders on Monday were greeted with a familiar set of drivers, from the weather to stockpiles. Low temperatures in the U.S. have been boosting demand for fuels, as Boston reported a daily snow record and New York’s Central Park saw more than 8 inches fall. Oil infrastructure in Ecuador was damaged by a rockslide, potentially endangering supply. Meanwhile, oil held on tankers fell by more than a fifth last week, the latest sign of ebbing inventories.

That combination of booming demand, scratchy supply and dwindling stockpiles has helped crude soar this month, with top banks and oil companies saying prices may soon pass $100 a barrel.

While the advance has gained extra support as Russia amasses troops near Ukraine, it has also been compounded by the inability of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies to meet planned supply output increases. The OPEC+ alliance gathers Wednesday to assess the market.