U.S. oil prices fell on Friday after the United States showed signs of following Asia into an economic slowdown, although crude supply withdrawals by producer club OPEC prevented prices from dropping even further.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures
International Brent crude futures
TRENDING NOW
Data from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) on Thursday showed U.S. factory activity slowed more than expected in December, mirroring similar data releases in Asia over the past week.
The slowdown comes over concerns that the trade war between the United States and China will drag down economic growth, triggering a surge in volatility and sending major stock markets deep into the red.
Despite this, oil prices are expected to receive some support as supply cuts announced late last year by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) start to kick in.
OPEC oil supply fell by 460,000 barrels per day (bpd) between November and December, to 32.68 million bpd, a Reuters survey found on Thursday, as top exporter Saudi Arabia made an early start to a supply-limiting accord, while Iran and Libya posted involuntary declines.
OPEC, Russia and other non-members - an alliance known as OPEC - agreed last December to reduce supply by 1.2 million bpd in 2019 versus October 2018 levels. OPEC`s share of that cut is 800,000 bpd.
"If OPEC is faithful to its agreed output cut together with non-OPEC partners, it would take 3-4 months to mop up the excess inventories," energy consultancy FGE said.
Considering the planned cuts versus ongoing increases in U.S. crude production, which hit a record 11.7 million bpd by late 2018, FGE said it expected Brent prices to range between $55-$60 per barrel in the first months of 2019.
(This article has not been edited by Zeebiz editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
06:30 am
Mcap of four of top 10 most-valued firms rises by Rs 65,671 crore
India's space economy set to reach USD 40 billion by 2040: Union Minister Jitendra Singh 
Germany's economy shrank, and it's facing a spending crisis that's spreading more gloom 
Japan's economy contracts as recession risks grow
China's 2023 growth target within reach - China bank governor