Oil prices moderately rise in anticipation of signals from US Federal Reserve

Global oil prices rose moderately on March 7 morning, Report informs referring to the auction data.

Investors continue to expect speeches by the head of the US Federal Reserve, which may contain hints on monetary policy and affect the outlook for the economy and demand.

The price of May futures for Brent crude rose by 0.29% to $86.43 per barrel, April futures for WTI grew by 0.26% to $80.67.

Later on March 7, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell will give speech before the Senate Banking Committee, and on March 8 before the Committee on Banking Services. Investors are hoping to hear from Powell hints about the future plans of the regulator on the rate amid still high inflation and fears of a recession.

According to CME Group, 70.1% of analysts expect the Fed to raise the key rate in March again by 25 basis points to 4.75-5% per annum. At the same time, 29.9% expect an increase of already 50 basis points.

At the same time, investors are evaluating statistics from China, which is one of the biggest consumers and importers of oil in the world. Imports of China in February decreased by 10.2%, while a decrease of only 5.5% was predicted. This is while exports fell by 6.8%, which was better than the forecast for a decline of 9.4%.