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On Friday, January WTI crude oil closed down by $0.10 (-0.17%) at $XX.XX, while January RBOB gasoline fell by $0.0058 (-0.32%). Prices declined from one-week highs due to hopes of an end to the Russian-Ukrainian war, which could ease sanctions on Russian energy and increase global oil supplies. Active US oil rigs dropped to a four-year low, signaling reduced domestic production.
Data from Vortexa revealed that Russia’s crude oil product shipments fell to 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) in early November, marking the lowest level in over three years, partly due to Ukraine’s targeting of Russian refineries. Additionally, OPEC+ is expected to maintain its plan to pause crude output increases in early 2026, with global oil markets projected to have a surplus of 500,000 bpd in Q3 2023.
As of November 21, US crude oil inventories were 3.8% below the five-year seasonal average, and active US oil rigs decreased by 12 to 407, a significant drop from the 627 rigs reported in December 2022.
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