The news from China boosted a rise in oil prices. Oil traders were encouraged by China's trade balance report. Last month, the trade surplus came in at 40 billion 210 million dollars. At the same time, the exports rose by 12.3%, while the imports advanced by 17.7%. Meanwhile, the import of Crude Oil increased by 19.37%. It indicates that China became the world's leading importer of Crude Oil, outrunning the United States. Surely, this news influenced the dynamics of oil prices. Investors hope that China's statistics will facilitate the implementation of the OPEC+ agreement that is designed to balance oil price growth. Thus, the Brent Crude Benchmark is approaching the level of $63 per barrel.
At the same time, WTI prices have already broken the level of $57 per barrel, coming closer to Tuesday's highs. Market participants are waiting for the oil rig count report from Baker Hughes that will provide information about a change in the number of active drilling facilities in United States. Prohably, this data will signal a rise in oil output in the US. Now, let us draw attention to the commodity currencies. The Russian ruble does not follow oil prices and continues to decline against the greenback. The USD/RUB pair is trading near the level of 59.30. Investors are eagerly anticipating the jobs data from the US Department of Labor. The pair is likely to end this week. Oil prices are also expected to extend gains.