On Tuesday afternoon, oil prices continued to rise, due to concerns about the hurricane season in the Atlantic and expectations of strong demand for fuel in the United States during the long weekend on the occasion of Independence Day. The current Brent quote is $87.40 per barrel. North American WTI crude is trading near $84.25. In the previous trading session, Brent rose by 1.9% and WTI by 2.3%, with both brands updating their highs since the end of April. Hurricane Beryl has strengthened to the fifth category and is approaching the southeastern part of the Caribbean. The last powerful hurricane in this region was Ivan, which killed dozens of people in Grenada 20 years ago. Market participants fear that the hurricane may reach the Gulf of Mexico, which will lead to the suspension of oil production in the area. Additional support for prices is provided by expectations of high demand. The American Automobile Association (AAA) predicts that a record 60.6 million Americans will go on car trips for the long weekend on the occasion of Independence Day, an increase of 2.8 million compared to last year.
