London — Oil prices were set for a weekly drop despite a slight gain in both benchmarks on Friday, on concerns that rising global supply could undermine efforts by oil cartel Opec and other producers to tighten the market. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil futures for April delivery rose 14c to $61.33 a barrel by 11.45am GMT, after settling up 23c on Thursday. WTI was set to fall 1.3% this week, reversing the previous week’s 1.3% gain. Brent crude futures trading in London climbed 6c to $65.18 a barrel, after settling up 23c. Brent was down 0.5% for the week. Reports this week refocused investor attention on the potential for rising supply to overwhelm expected gains in crude demand for 2018. On Thursday, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said global oil supply increased in February by 700,000 barrels per day (bpd) from a year ago to 97.9-million bpd. The IEA also said supply from producers outside Opec, led by the US, would grow by 1.8-million bpd this year from an increase of ...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.