International oil prices all plunged more than 10% on the 9th (local time). This can be attributed to the fact that the United Arab Emirates (UAE), an oil-producing country, urged the OPEC+ to increase oil production faster and reaffirmed that Ukrainian President Volodymir Zelensky is willing to make some compromises to end the war with Russia.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell more than 12% from the previous trading day to $108.7 a barrel. This is the highest drop since November 26 last year. Earlier, the WTI surpassed $130 a barrel due to the heightened geopolitical crisis in Ukraine. This was the highest in 13 years.
Brent crude oil, a benchmark for international oil prices, also plunged 13% from the previous trading day to $111.1 a barrel. This is the largest daily drop since April 2020. Brent crude oil hit $139 on the 7th, the highest since 2008.
In particular, Brent crude oil once plunged more than 17% from the previous trading day to $105 a barrel.
The UAE said it would urge fellow OPEC+ member states to increase oil production faster.
At the same time, President Zelensky Ukra said in an interview with Germany’s Bild magazine, “We are ready to compromise to end the war.”
The U.S. and the U.K. announced a ban on imports of Russian crude oil the previous day, but other European countries are reluctant to do so. This is because Europe is highly dependent on crude oil from Russia. Europe’s imports of Russian crude oil account for about 25%.
On the other hand, the U.S. is less dependent on Washington. Last year, the U.S. imports of Russian crude oil accounted for 3% of the total imports and 8% of refined oil, respectively.
As a result, the U.S. is active in banning imports of Russian crude oil, while Europe is lukewarm.
