Crude Oil Prices Fall In Asia As Risk Sentiment Weighs On Markets

Investing.com – Crude oil pries fell in Asia on Monday with risk off sentiment weighing on a dip in regional equities and futures pointing to a weaker US open.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for March delivery fell 0.81% to $64.92 a barrel. ICE April futures, the benchmark for oil prices outside the U.S., dipped 0.87% to $67.98 a barrel.

Last week, oil prices finished lower on Friday to tally a loss for the week, as traders weighed a steady increase in U.S. output against OPEC’s ongoing efforts to drain the market of excess supplies.

The number of oil drilling rigs climbed for a second week in a row, General Electric (NYSE:NYSE:)’s Baker Hughes energy services firm said in its closely followed report on Friday. It rose by six to 765 last week, implying that further gains in domestic production are ahead.

That came after data on Wednesday showed that stockpiles rose 6.8 million barrels last week, which marked the first increase in 11 weeks. The report also showed that U.S. crude oil production, driven by shale extraction, hit 9.91 million barrels per day, the highest level since the early 1970s and close to the output of top producers Russia and Saudi Arabia.

Domestic U.S. output has rebounded by almost 20% since the most recent low in mid-2016, and increasing drilling activity for new production means output is expected to grow further, as producers are attracted by climbing prices.

Oil prices have risen almost 55% from around $43 a barrel in June, benefiting from production cut efforts led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and Russia. The producers agreed in December to extend current oil output cuts until the end of 2018.

The deal to cut oil output by 1.8 million barrels a day (bpd) was adopted last winter by OPEC, Russia and nine other global producers. The agreement was due to end in March 2018, having already been extended once.

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