Oil prices have peaked since early March after a sharp drop in U.S. crude oil inventories and a weakening dollar, as the spread of the coronavirus epidemic worries investors.
The price of the reference American oil is around 42.2 dollars per barrel, which is an increase of 1.2 percent, while the price of “Brent” oil is around 45.2 dollars per barrel, which is an increase of 1.7 percent, according to Bloomberg.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. crude oil inventories fell 7.4 million barrels last week. Analysts had predicted a drop of three million barrels.
The rise in oil prices was also affected by the fall in the value of the dollar.
The rise in oil prices was also contributed by indications that there is progress in the negotiations between Democrats and Republicans in the US Congress on the aid package due to the coronavirus epidemic.
Investitori fears that this package could encourage inflation, which led to a jump in gold prices by 35 percent this year.
