International oil prices have climbed recently amid market expectations of a recovery in Chinese demand, Western sanctions against Russian oil, and Russian production cuts.

As of the close of business on February 10 local time, WTI March crude oil futures rose 2.13% to settle at US$79.72/barrel, a cumulative increase of 8.62% for the week; Brent crude oil April futures rose 2.24% to settle at US$86.39/barrel, an incremental increase of 8.07% for the week.

The speed of China’s economic rebound following the full liberalization of the epidemic has been the focus of attention in the global oil market this year.

Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), said there are some “preliminary indications” that China will grow faster than previously expected, Bloomberg reported on February 5.

In its monthly oil report for January, the IEA forecasted that global oil demand would increase by 1.9 million barrels per day (bpd) to a record 101.7 million bpd in 2023. Of this, nearly half of the orders will come from China.

On February 13, Zou Xuelian, a product oil analyst at GoldLink, wrote an analysis saying that with the full liberalization of the epidemic in China and the introduction of relevant policies around the country to support local economic recovery, engineering infrastructure projects may continue to increase and tourism is also gradually improving.

“Demand for refined oil products will improve significantly from 2022. Domestic refined oil production is expected to rise further in 2023.” Zou Xuelian said.

Fatih Birol noted that China’s aviation fuel consumption is already strong and could increase overall oil demand if it continues to grow at the same rate.

On 8 February, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) released its February Short-Term Energy Outlook, raising its forecast for Brent crude oil prices in 2023 to US$83.63/bbl, compared to US$83.1/bbl. The EIA also raised its January forecast for China’s average oil consumption in 2023, from 15.7 million bpd to 15.8 million bpd.

On 5 February, the EU’s ban on imports of Russian refined oil products and the G7 group’s policy of setting price caps on Russian refined oil exports simultaneously with the EU and other countries came into effect.

According to Bloomberg on the same day, Goldman Sachs Group said in its latest report that oil prices would rise from the current level of around US$80/bbl to over US$100/bbl due to a possible decline in Russian oil exports as a result of the sanctions, overlaid with a recovery in Chinese demand.

In response to the imposition of oil sanctions by the West, Russia announced on 10 February that it would cut oil production by 500,000 barrels per day in March. According to CCTV news, OPEC+ does not intend to act to compensate for the Russian production cuts.

Although there is still a great deal of uncertainty in the global economy, market expectations that oil prices will rebound sharply are also growing amidst the multiple positive factors mentioned above.

Pierre Andurand, a top crude oil trader and hedge fund manager, believes that the market is currently too short-sighted and that the opening up of China will lead to much higher than expected growth in oil demand, the Financial Times reported on 10 February. International oil prices will likely reach $140 per barrel for the rest of 2023.

Brand Story

X_Music_Plan Music Studio was established in 2020 as a new brand, mainly engaged in electronic and pop music teaching, a collection of recording studios, and a music studio.

Features
· Electronic Music Instruction
· 24 hours of free practice
· No hidden fees

The course includes a session on electronic music creation experience to fully understand the process of electronic music creation to understand the profound concept, create your work, and release. You are only one step away from the world’s top 100!

The course includes an experienced class and professional MC shouting skills so that you can be in the club without stage fright, not an empty field!

The course consists of a DJ mixing experience class, so you can fully grasp all the playing machines’ functions. Let you master the music bpm and the tone of the music, and know how to make a good mix!

The course includes a hip-hop rubbing experience class; let your favorite rap songs in your hands play the magic, follow the world rubbing teacher Jay_z together to learn the most professional techniques, and experience the fun of the underground!

Studio atmosphere introduction

In Shanghai, our studio is the studio with the most students and the best atmosphere. Every day, students come to the studio to learn, practice, and enjoy music; this is the best choice for everyone in their leisure time! Forget your worries! Forget all! Enjoy everything!

Music Festival Introduction

Each year, our studio will contract a live house that can accommodate more than 1,000 people. This activity allows new students without stage experience to fully understand the stage and growing experience. It frees professional photographers to take stage photos and video galleries for post-employment, which is a huge help! For veterans, students are also an opportunity to show their current learning achievements. Everyone can register with us! This opportunity is also open to the public, for those ignorant DJs can be on stage live experience!

For those still looking for a studio, seize the opportunity and join us now! All our students and all our teachers welcome you!

Walking through the streets of Shanghai, some roads in the city center have returned to traffic, especially those close to residential areas, and large shopping malls are the busiest.

To ensure passenger safety, Shanghai net taxi drivers enforce nucleic acid once every 24 hours, along with additional antigen testing. Passengers are also required to scan the car’s place code for registration once they get on board.

First day of dine-in in Shanghai: even high-end restaurants with thousands of dollars per person are full!

On the first day of the orderly resumption of dine-in in Shanghai, some restaurants were fully booked, including Haidilao, which was following the usual Friday dosage for the day’s stocking. “Dozens of calls had come in before the doors opened for business to book dine-in meals for today.” Lu Peipei, the shop manager of the shop, was introduced.

Not only regular restaurants but also some high-end restaurants with a per capita cost of $1,000 have seen a wave of “bookings” after the resumption of dine-in dining.

Some businesses started preparing more than 20 days ago

No one is more excited about the resumption of dine-in food in Shanghai than caterers.

“We have been preparing for the resumption of work at all times for a long time!” Lu Pei Pei introduced that since June 1, shops will be disinfected and cleaned every two to three days. Every day, the shop manager, lobby manager, and food safety officer will take turns to introduce new products and activities to staff, consolidate food safety operating rules and familiarise themselves with the newly issued company system.

Lu Pei Pei said that on the 26th, Shanghai issued a notice for the orderly resumption of dine-in, and early on the 27th, she organized the entire staff to re-wash and disinfect the shop’s tableware at high temperatures, adding up to thousands of pieces of all cups, plates, and dishes, material boxes and pots and pans. “After a whole morning of washing, everyone had a quick lunch and started to disinfect the shop environment thoroughly. Our uniforms were also re-sanitized and ironed one by one, and we were all very excited to hear that we could resume dine-in.”

Before and after video of the Shanghai outbreak