Oil Prices Decline As OPEC+ Could Raise Output

Oil prices declined on Thursday, amid expectations that the OPEC+ alliance could raise production in March after the recent surges in crude prices.

Crude prices recently not only recovered all of their losses since the beginning of the pandemic but reached their highest level since the beginning of 2020.

It was reported that this might lead OPEC+ to increase output, as the alliance now hold monthly meetings to agree on production policies and quotas.

Today, Brent crude futures for April delivery finished lower by 41 cents, or 0.6%, at $63.93 per barrel.

Meanwhile, the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for March delivery declined by 62 cents, or 1%, to close at $60.52 per barrel.

The decline comes despite a winter storm hitting the United States and Mexico continuing to affect production and refining activities, mainly in Texas, and causing increased demand for energy and heat sources.

In addition, the weekly report of the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed on Thursday that crude oil inventories in the United States declined by 7.3 million barrels last week.