Crude may hit $80/bl this year—Montepeque

The oil market veteran sees further price upside

Demand strength in the US and China and a bullish storage picture should prime oil prices for further gains, even as high as $80/bl, according to Jorge Montepeque, president of challenger price reporting agency (PRA) General Index and formerly the influential head of markets at rival PRA S&P Global Platts.    “The most important thing over the past year-and-a-half is that the price has jumped like nobody could have imagined,” says Montepeque. “The market has essentially gone up by 90pc. Imagine that, in the middle of the most cataclysmic shrinkage in demand, we have seen an increase in prices of 90pc in a year.” 10-15pc – US gasoline demand back above pre-Covid levels And he sees