- WTI price recovered its intraday losses due to escalated fear of supply disruption from the Middle East.
- Crude oil prices faced a challenge of demand threat after the release of robust US CPI data.
- ANZ analysts worry about the OPEC’s adherence to its recent production cuts.
- API Weekly Crude Oil Stock surged by 8.52 million barrels for the week ending on February 5.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil price is on a path to resume its winning streak, trading around $77.50 per barrel during the Asian trading hours on Wednesday. Despite facing challenges, the price of Crude oil has recovered its intraday losses.
ANZ analysts attributed the weakening of oil prices partly to concerns about supply levels from members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). According to OPEC’s monthly oil market report, there are worries about the group’s adherence to its recent production cuts. Notably, only Kuwait and Algeria have implemented their share of cuts, while Iraq’s output remains well above the agreed quota.
Additionally, Crude oil prices encountered resistance after the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a significant increase in US crude inventories. According to the API Weekly Crude Oil Stock report, Crude inventories surged by 8.52 million barrels for the week ending on February 5, surpassing market expectations of a 2.6-million-barrel increase.
The unexpected upside surprise in US inflation data is exerting downward pressure on oil prices, as it implies the likelihood of higher interest rates in the United States persisting for an extended period, thereby dampening demand in the market.
In January, the US headline Consumer Price Index (CPI) came in at 3.1%, surpassing the anticipated 2.9% but slightly lower than the previous rate of 3.4%. Additionally, month-over-month inflation rose by 0.3%, contrary to the expectation of maintaining the previous reading of 0.2%.
The US Core CPI (YoY) remained unchanged at 3.9%, defying market expectations of a decline to 3.7% in January. Moreover, US Core Inflation (MoM) increased by 0.4%, surpassing the expected unchanged reading of 0.3% for January.
Investors are now eagerly awaiting the release of the US Energy Information Administration’s Crude Oil Stocks Change data for the week ending on February 9, with expectations of a decline in stockpiles of Crude oil and its derivatives in the United States.