Meanwhile, crude exports from Iraq’s southern oil fields have fallen by more than 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) to around 3.15 million barrels so far in May, according to Reuters citing an industry source and loading data. The top oil exporter to the United States, the Alberta wildfires had idled around 1 million barrels per day worth of production.
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Tehran’s stance appeared to reinforce market doubts that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) – of which Iran is a member – will take any firm action to curb oversupply at its next meeting in Vienna on June 2.
Deputy Oil Minister Rokneddin Javadi said on Sunday that Iran has no plans to freeze the level of its oil production and exports, as the country tries to raise its crude exports to pre-sanctions levels.
Oil pared losses after a report showed a stockpile drawdown at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery hub for US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures. However, Iran has no interest in shoring up its oil exports as it has been excluded from the world market for so long because of sanctions brought on by the United States, the European Union, and the United Nations.
Crude oil (WTI) is decreasing 0.58% to $48.13 per barrel and Brent crude is falling 0.57% to $48.44 per barrel.
West Texas Intermediate, the US benchmark price for oil, was off 1.5 percent to start trading in NY at $47.65 per barrel. The price for Brent crude oil was down 1.6 percent to open at $47.93 per barrel.
They pointed to four factors that will “guarantee” prices continue to fluctuate: Aside from Saudi Arabia’s impact on OPEC strategy, the other three include US shale production, fragile governance in oil-dependant nations and computer-driven trading. Even so, it remains less than half of the mid 2014 highs of more than $100. Since the deal was announced, the tanker Seachance loaded 660,000 bbl of crude and sailed from Hariga on Friday, Tripoli-based National Oil Corp. said in a statement. “The key going forward is the OPEC meeting”.
An economic slowdown in the U.S. could disrupt this. “That is a significant repricing”, analysts at banking group ANZ said in a market report on Monday.
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The American Petroleum Institute releases inventory data on Tuesday, while figures from the U.S. government’s Energy Information Administration come on Wednesday. OPEC’s own monthly oil market report calculates a “differential” between demand and supply while the EIA refers to a “total stock draw” or an “implied stock balance”.
