Oil Retreats After Angola Exits OPEC

Oil futures declined on Thursday after Angola announced its decision to leave the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

The move seemingly stirred investors’ hopes there would be more supply as the African country previously voiced opposition to the group’s recent decisions, including the one on production cuts.

WTI intiallt decreased by 1.52% at 7:50 am ET to sell for $72.11 per barrel. At the time of writing, rebounding WTI crude oil is trading at $73.79 per barrel. At the same time, Brent Oil Futures for February delivery were down 0.11% on the day to trade at $79 per barrel.

Futures on US West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil edged lower on Thursday and looked set to snap a three-day streak of gains, since demand-related concerns after an unexpected US crude stock build overshadowed worries over disruptions to global trade.

WTI Futures rose over the past several days on investor concerns over trade disruptions, after major maritime carriers opted to stay clear of the Red Sea route following attacks by Iran-aligned Yemeni Houthi militant group on vessels in the area.

“Market focus returned to sluggish global demand as the impact on the Red Sea is seen to be limited on oil as long as it does not spill over into the Strait of Hormuz,” Tsuyoshi Ueno, senior economist at NLI Research Institute, was quoted as saying by Reuters.

However, a build in US crude inventories and a record US oil output weighed on the market. The latest data by the US Energy Information Administration showed that US crude oil stockpiles had surged by 2.9 million barrels to 443.7 million barrels during the week to December 15th. In comparison, market consensus had pointed to a 2.3-million-barrel decrease.

The EIA also reported that US crude oil production had reached a fresh record of 13.3 million barrels per day last week. The previous record stood at 13.2 million barrels per day.

WTI Crude Oil Futures for February delivery were last edging down 0.18% to trade at $74.09 per barrel.