Oil Records Largest Weekly Loss in Two Years

Oil prices declined at settlement after member countries of the International Energy Agency agreed to tap into strategic oil reserves, coinciding with the largest drawdown ever from reserves in the United States. Standard contracts for Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate fell by about 13 percent, marking their biggest weekly decline in two years following U.S. President Joe Biden's announcement to release oil from emergency reserves. Brent crude futures dropped by 32 cents or 0.3 percent to settle at $104.39 per barrel. Meanwhile, U.S. crude futures fell by $1.01 or one percent to $99.27 per barrel. The U.S. President announced yesterday the withdrawal of one million barrels of oil per day over six months starting in May, representing the largest draw from U.S. oil reserves. The OPEC+ bloc, which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, including Russia, announced on Thursday its commitment to plans to increase production by 432,000 barrels per day in May. American energy companies increased the number of oil and gas rigs for the second consecutive week, but the growth in the number of active rigs remains slow as companies continue to return profits to shareholders after a significant rise in oil prices instead of ramping up production. JPMorgan stated in a note that it kept its price forecasts unchanged at $114 per barrel for the second quarter and $101 per barrel for the second half of this year.