據8月16日Oil Now報道，在8月16日亞洲早盤交易中，原油期貨價格走低。作為石油消費大國的中國出臺的限制措施，影響了石油的流動性，加上美國新冠肺炎病例增多，投資者對德爾塔變異病毒快速蔓延的擔憂重新出現。

　　新加坡時間上午10:51 （格林尼治時間02:51），洲際交易所10月布倫特原油期貨合約較之前收盤價下跌80美分/桶(1.13%)，至69.79美元/桶，而紐約商品交易所9月輕質低硫原油合約價格下跌77美分/桶(1.13%)，至67.67美元/桶。

　　Vanda Insights首席執行官Vandana Hari表示，“對變異病毒的擔憂正進一步控制著石油市場情緒。西方夏季旅游和旅游業的繁榮正在逐漸消失，病毒繼續在世界各地蔓延”。

　　分析師表示，8月16日油價下跌可能只是短暫的，因為隨著本周的進展，投資者需要時間來重新評估供求前景，“貿易模式顯示出的是恐懼和從眾心理，而不是冷靜地重新調整需求。最近幾周，我們看到了類似的‘恐慌星期一’”。

　　美國新冠肺炎病例數量持續增長。8月12日，美國疾病控制與預防中心報告了自2021年1月以來的最高病例數，為146949例。截至8月13日，7天移動平均數為119523例，是7月初平均值的6倍多。

　　此外，需求前景仍然高度不確定。上周，國際能源署（IEA）指出，由于亞洲其他地區的新冠肺炎疫情重新出現，7月份的石油需求下降了12萬桶/天，并將2021年下半年的需求預測下調了60萬桶/天，至9815萬桶/天。

　　與此同時，歐佩克在8月12日表示，其對2021年和2022年的全球需求預測保持不變，未來幾個月石油需求應繼續高于供應。

　　王佳晶 摘譯自 Oil Now

　　原文如下：

　　Delta tightening grip on oil market

　　Crude oil futures were lower during mid-morning Asian trade Aug. 16 as investor concerns over the fast-spreading delta variant resurfaced amid restrictive movement curbs in oil consuming giant China and growing number of cases in the US.

　　At 10:51 am Singapore time (0251 GMT), the ICE October Brent futures contract was down 80 cents/b (1.13%) from the previous close at $69.79/b, while the NYMEX September light sweet crude contract similarly fell 77 cents/b (1.13%) at $67.67/b.

　　“The delta [variant] worries are tightening their grip on oil market sentiment,” Vandana Hari, CEO of Vanda Insights, said. “The summer travel and tourism boom in the West is petering out, while the virus continues to fester in pockets across the world.”

　　Analysts said the Aug. 16 dip in oil markers may be short-lived as investors take time to reassess the supply-demand outlook as the week progresses.

　　“The trade patterns suggest fear and a herd mentality more than a cool-headed recalibration of demand. We have seen a few such “panic Mondays” in recent weeks,” Hari said.

　　COVID-19 case numbers in the US have continued to grow. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Aug. 12 reported its highest number of COVID-19 cases since January 2021 at 146,949. The seven-day moving average stood at 119,523 as of Aug. 13, more than six times the average at the start of July.

　　The demand outlook remains highly uncertain. Last week, the International Energy Agency pointed to a 120,000 b/d drop in July oil demand because of the coronavirus resurgence in other parts of Asia, and had cut its second-half 2021 demand estimate by 600,000 b/d to 98.15 million b/d.

　　OPEC, meanwhile, said on Aug. 12 it was keeping its global demand forecasts for 2021 and 2022 unchanged, and that oil demand should remain higher than supply over the coming months.