Oil prices edged higher in volatile trading on Wednesday as investors focused their attention on an upcoming OPEC+ output policy meeting and looked past a jump in US crude, gasoline and distillate stockpiles.
Brent crude futures were up 43 cents, or 0.5%, to $82.11 a barrel by 1632 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 49 cents, or 0.6%, at $76.90 a barrel. Both benchmarks gained more than a dollar earlier in the session, briefly turned negative before the bearish weekly US inventory report was released, and then rebounded after.
“Prices are going to remain volatile until we get greater clarity out of OPEC,” Kpler analyst Matt Smith said.
Read: Oil rises over 2% with focus on OPEC+ cuts
Oil benchmarks rose about 2% on Tuesday as the market anticipated that OPEC+, made up of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies such as Russia, would extend or deepen supply cuts.
OPEC+ on Wednesday continued talks, which sources had described as difficult. A meeting to decide on next year’s output policy on Thursday was, however, expected to go ahead on schedule. “We expect Saudi Arabia to extend their 1 million bpd production cut with little other positive news from the meeting,” Smith said.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2023.
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