- Oil is trading higher, around $69, after falling more than $3 yesterday
- WTI and Brent are trading near five-month lows following yesterday’s sell-off
- The EIA released their Short-Term Energy Outlook yesterday, raising forecasts for US crude production to 13.11 MMBbl/d in 2024
- OPEC attributes oil price drop to exaggerated demand concerns (Reuters)
- According to the latest OPEC report, the recent fall in oil prices is due to exaggerated demand concerns, while fundamentals in 2024 look stronger
- OPEC said it is "cautiously optimistic” and continued to blame speculators for causing outsized moves in price
- The organization kept its forecast for global oil demand growth in 2024 unchanged at 2.25 MMBbl/d
- OPEC has consistently forecast higher demand growth than other forecasters, such as the IEA, despite a similar view on 2023 demand
- Influx of Venezuelan fuel oil into Asian markets (BBG)
- Three VLCCs with a capacity of 2 MMBbls each offloaded cargoes of fuel oil in Southeast Asia in November, according to ship tracking data from Bloomberg
- Since the implementation of US sanctions on Venezuela, China has been the primary buyer of the country's crude and products
- As Venezuela ramps up production, India and China may purchase more of the South American crude instead of their recent slate of Russian oil
- Shell adding additional wells in the Gulf of Mexico (BBG)
- Shell announced a campaign to drill three wells in the Great White Field in the Gulf of Mexico to boost production at the Perdido spar platform
- Completion is expected by April 2025, adding 22 MBbl/d to the company's GoM production