Oil prices shed nearly $3 a barrel Thursday to settle at their lowest level in nearly 19 months, after the government reported higher-than-expected inventories of gasoline, heating oil and diesel fuel amid warm winter weather.
Light, sweet crude for February delivery dropped $2.73, or 4.7 percent, to settle at $55.59 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The contract on Thursday fell US$2.73, or 4.7 percent, to settle at $55.59 a barrel the lowest settlement price since June 15, 2005. The drop followed a 4.5 percent decline Wednesday.
Weather has become an increasingly important factor in the price of oil in recent years.
Sliding oil prices has raised concern for OPEC members.
Libya’s top oil official Shokri Ghanem said Friday that OPEC may need to meet in February or March to address the issue.
A top Iranian oil official said on Thursday OPEC was keeping an eye on fund activity in the markets, although OPEC’s supply cut of 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) from Feb. 1, adding to a cut of 1.2 million bpd from November, might be enough to keep markets balanced until the 12-member group meets on March 15.
Some analysts said the impact of OPEC’s supply cuts would be felt in the markets in the coming weeks.
Image credit: Physorg
Via: Bloom Berg
