By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Apr. 19 -- Energy commodity prices continued to slip on Apr. 18, to the point where the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries may no longer be considering another hike in its production quota.
Ahmad Fahad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, Kuwaiti oil minister and OPEC's conference president, said oil prices have fallen to "almost fair" levels. Therefore, he said, OPEC can wait until its June 15 meeting to decide whether to raise its production quota again.
Meanwhile, the May contract for benchmark US sweet, light crudes declined by 12¢ to $50.37/bbl on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while the June contract fell by 59¢ to $51.47/bbl. On the US spot market, West Texas Intermediate at Cushing, Okla., lost 12¢ to $50.38/bbl. Heating oil for May delivery on NYMEX declined by 1.76¢ to $1.44/gal. Gasoline for the same month was down by 1.06¢ to $1.49/gal.
The May natural gas contract lost 4.7¢ to $6.95/MMbtu on NYMEX, "as weaker crude oil and mild weather continued to weigh on prices," said analysts at Enerfax Daily. However, they said, "A large number of nuclear power units out for refueling or maintenance helped limit the downside."
In London, the June contract for North Sea Brent crude fell by 83¢ to $50.78/bbl on the International Petroleum Exchange.
The average price for OPEC's basket of seven benchmark crudes lost 56¢ to $46.52/bbl on Apr. 18.
