Oil falls in price due to an increase in crude oil stocks in the US
Kyiv • UNN
Oil prices fell due to an increase in US crude oil inventories and expectations of possible inaction by OPEC+ in its production policy, which led to profit-taking after a strong rally in mid-March.
Oil prices are falling after the US announced an increase in crude oil reserves, as it is the world's largest consumer of this resource.
Written by UNN with reference to Reuters.
Details
Prices for May futures for Brent crude oil fell by $0.74 to $85.51 per barrel. The May contract expires on March 28, while the June contract, which is more active, lost $0.68 to settle at $84.95 per barrel. Futures for US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for May delivery also fell by $0.64 to $80.98.
During this week, oil prices declined after reaching their highest since October last week and remain close to 3% higher than the average closing price in the first week of March.
A sharp rise in US crude oil inventories and expectations of potential OPEC+ inaction in its production policy next week led to further declines in oil prices in today's session as profit-taking accelerates after a strong rally in mid-March
According to the American Petroleum Institute, US crude oil inventories increased by 9.3 million barrels in the week ended March 22. There was also an increase in distillate stocks by 531 thousand barrels. At the same time, gasoline stocks decreased by 4.4 million barrels.
Recall
Oil prices dropped due to an expected increase in supplies from Russia, slower growth in jet fuel demand and cautious trading ahead of the Fed's interest rate decision.
