Oil futures closed higher this Friday (7), but they accumulated losses during the week, pressured by signs of oversupply and Saudi Arabia’s decision to significantly reduce selling prices.
The limited recovery in today’s session still occurred amid rising inventories in the US and prospects of a market in a supply surplus situation.
WTI oil for December, traded Nymex (New York Mercantile Exchange), closed up 0.54% (US$0.32), at US$59.75 per barrel. Brent for January, negotiated on ICE (London Intercontinental Exchange),increased 0.4% (US$0.35), to US$63.63 per barrel.
For the week, WTI and Brent fell 2.02% and 1.76%, respectively.
State-owned Saudi Aramco cut official selling prices for Asian customers by up to US$1.40 per barrel and US$0.50 for the US, keeping them stable in Europe.
The measure, according to analysts, reflects the attempt to preserve market share amid weak demand. For Ipek Ozkardeskaya, from Swissquote, the cut “signals concern about demand and the pace of global activity”.
According to consultancy Ritterbusch and Associates, the appreciation of diesel after new attacks on Russian refineries has given some support to prices, while the weaker dollar helps contain losses.
Still, a build of more than 5 million barrels in U.S. crude oil inventories, according to the Department of Energy, has limited the recovery.
Amena Bakr, from consultancy Kpler, considered that the market is facing excess supply, but that the term “surplus” is exaggerated. “The volumes are high, but they don’t compare to the glut of the pandemic”, he stated. Oxford Economics recalls that OPEC+ must stop production increases in the first quarter of 2026.
“The group has been more concerned about excess supply, in line with our expectations that the oil market will move towards a surplus in the coming months,” he said when projecting Brent at an average of US$63.60 in 2026.
*With information from Dow Jones Newswires
