Other news

Gas futures in Europe fell 9.8% on Friday to end the week with a loss of 28%. Weather in many parts of Europe is expected to be milder in early January, which means that residents will not need to use much heat.

According to a statement made by Russia’s vice prime minister Alexander Novak, the country may increase the volumes of crude oil exports in case there’s a decline in refinery throughput because of the European Union’s banning fuel imports.

On Saturday, the head of the German government's council of economists said inflation could persist for the next two years. This is due to the fact that companies are moving towards a higher level of production costs, and even often exceeding it.

Beijing and Shanghai residents took to the streets and crowded subways of Chinese cities on Monday as COVID restrictions have been partially lifted.

Canadian TC Energy Corp. announced that it will begin the restart process of the Keystone oil pipeline segment. Previously, it was shut down due to an oil leak.

Forecasts of analysts concerning the oil prices. Citi — Brent $80, WTI $75; JPMorgan — Brent $90; OPIS — Brent $95 – 96, WTI $90; Infrastructure Capital Advisors — $80 – $100.

On Friday, U.S. natural gas futures rose about 2%. Extremely cold weather acted as a major driver of rising energy prices, which have peaked in most parts of the country over the past few years.

A new COVID wave is spreading in China, with cities and provinces reporting hundreds of thousands of new COVID cases every day. Outbreaks are predicted to peak in January 2023.

Gold prices may jump to $4,000 an ounce due to lingering market volatility, supported by interest rate hikes and looming recession. This opinion was shared by Juerg Kiener from Swiss Asia Capital, who is a managing director and chief investment officer of the company.

Responding to the sanctions, Russia warned about a possible decrease in oil production by almost 700,000 barrels per day.