MARKET WATCH: NYMEX crude oil prices hovering above $43/bbl

The light, sweet crude oil contract for December delivery fell slightly in New York to settle at less than $44/bbl on Nov. 14—the lowest settlement since Sept. 19. The US crude futures price for December fell to as low as $42.20/bbl on Nov. 14—the lowest intraday price since August.

By closing, prices rebound to $43.32/bbl. Brent oil prices climbed in Nov. 15 after Bloomberg reported Qatar, Venezuela, and Algeria were working to resolve differences among members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

OPEC has proposed cutting production quotas at its upcoming meeting on Nov. 30 given ample world oil supplies and a 2-year slump in oil prices. In September, the cartel suggested cutting its production to 32.5-33 million b/d. Recent estimates put OPEC production at 33.64 million b/d in October.

“We believe the amount of production cut that will be delivered will fall short of helping the market to rebalance in 2017, assuming recovery in Libya and Nigeria and stability in Venezuela,” Harry Tchilinguirian, BNP Paribas head of commodity strategy, told the Wall Street Journal.

Energy prices

The December crude oil contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 9¢ on Nov. 14 to close at $43.32/bbl. The January contract dropped 21¢ to $43.94/bbl.

The natural gas contract for December gained 13¢ to a rounded $2.75/MMbtu. On the spot market, the Henry Hub gas price rose 19¢ to $2.22/MMbtu.

Heating oil for December was down 1.6¢ to a rounded $1.38/gal. The price for reformulated gasoline stock for oxygenates blending for December dropped nearly 3¢ to a rounded $1.28/gal.

The January Brent crude contract on London’s ICE was down 32¢ to settle at $44.43/bbl. The Brent contract for February declined 34¢ to $45.48/bbl. The December gas oil contract dropped $5 to $401.75/tonne.

The average price for OPEC’s basket of benchmark crudes on Nov. 14 was $40.94/bbl, down 60¢.

Contact Paula Dittrick at paulad@ogjonline.com.