The oil price rallies – but a full recovery is a long way off

Brent crude continued its rally early this week. But countries that depend on oil are still in a difficult spot.

kofisk oil production platform, the North Sea © Jan Hakan Dahlstrom/Getty
Fields in the North Sea are becoming uneconomical © Getty
(Image credit: kofisk oil production platform, the North Sea © Jan Hakan Dahlstrom/Getty)

US futures plunged below zero in April due to Covid-19’s destruction of demand and a US-Saudi price war. Yet oil then staged an 88% rally during May.

Slowly reopening economies and the recent producers’ deal to cut output by ten million barrels per day in May and June – a deal that this week looked set to be extended – have stabilised the market. Brent crude continued its rally early this week, eclipsing $40 a barrel.

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Markets editor

Alex is an investment writer who has been contributing to MoneyWeek since 2015. He has been the magazine’s markets editor since 2019. 

Alex has a passion for demystifying the often arcane world of finance for a general readership. While financial media tends to focus compulsively on the latest trend, the best opportunities can lie forgotten elsewhere. 

He is especially interested in European equities – where his fluent French helps him to cover the continent’s largest bourse – and emerging markets, where his experience living in Beijing, and conversational Chinese, prove useful. 

Hailing from Leeds, he studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the University of Oxford. He also holds a Master of Public Health from the University of Manchester.