Oil prices are currently trading around $76 a barrel

Oil prices fluctuated
, according to Bloomberg on January 4, the market expected OPEC to agree to increase production again in February.

The New York futures market fluctuated
around $76 a barrel.
OPEC+ will approve plans to increase production by 400,000 barrels per day in February at its meeting on Tuesday, delegates said
.
Despite fears, the outbreak could dent demand
.

The overall OPEC+ supply and demand situation looks to be improving, with the group cutting its first-quarter earnings forecast
as rival production growth slowed.
In recent weeks, oil-producing countries have experienced a spate of supply problems
.

The oil market structure remains at a bullish spot premium, suggesting continued tight supply
.
Investors are also returning, with fund managers ramping up their bullish bets on Brent crude last week to their highest level
since July.

Hans van Cleef, senior energy economist at ABN Amro, said: "I don't think OPEC+ will bring too many surprises, as more and more producers start to struggle, the biggest challenge is starting to actually achieve a theoretical increase in production"
.

Price-wise

At 10:02 a.
m.
London time, West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.
5 percent to $
76.
46 a barrel.
Brent crude also settled up 0.
5% at $79.
34 a barrel in March

The OPEC+ Joint Technical Committee, which analyzes the market for ministers, expects a surplus of 1.
4 million barrels per day in the first three months of 2022, about 25 percent
less than expected a month ago, according to a Bloomberg report.