U.S. oil prices headed higher on Tuesday after two oil platforms on the Gulf of Mexico were evacuated in advance of an expected hurricane. U.S. WTI futures were trading at $70.06 per barrel as of 1:05 p.m. HK/SIN, up 0.37 percent. Brent crude futures were lower on Tuesday afternoon in Asia, trading down 0.10 percent to $78.07 per barrel.
On Monday the Anadarko Petroleum Corp announced that it had halted production and evacuated two facilities in the northern Gulf of Mexico in advance of Hurricane Gordon. Oil prices were also under pressure as international shippers stopped loading Iranian oil in preparation for U.S. sanctions against Iran. Still, many Asian importers are continuing to plan for Iranian oil purchases despite the U.S. sanctions. In an interview with CNBC on Monday, energy expert John Kildruff noted that Iranian sanctions could be a leading factor that would propel WTI prices higher. He forecasts an increase of as much as 30 percent in the U.S. WTI prices by the winter, with a break of the $75 per barrel level within a few weeks. Kildruff predicts that oil prices could near the $85-$95 range due to the loss of Iranian oil worldwide and rising gasoline demands. Tom Kloza, the co-founder of the Oil Price Information Service, told CNBC earlier this month that WTI prices could even surpass $100 per barrel in the coming months.
As reported by Reuters, crude oil prices “could reach $80 and higher in the short term”, according to Britain’s Barclays bank. The bank also said it expects Brent to average at $75 per barrel, a huge jump from its prior prediction of $55 per barrel. French bank BNP Paribas has set its Brent price average forecast at $79 per barrel for 2019.