Light, sweet crude oil for May delivery increased just shy of $1 to settle above $60/bbl on Mar. 20. Government data Mar. 20 indicated a tightening of US oil supplies, pushing the price past the $60/bbl mark for the first time since Nov. 9, 2018.
Analysts expected a small drawdown in supplies, but the US Energy Information Administration’s weekly oil and products inventory report showed crude oil inventories for the prior week decreased 9.6 million bbl (OGJ Online, Mar. 20, 2019). At 439.5 million bbl, US crude oil inventories are about 2% below the 5-year average for this time of year, the report indicated. Refined fuels also were down.
Brent for May delivery closed in London Mar. 20 at $68.50/bbl—the highest settlement in 4 months.
Energy prices
The May contract for light, sweet crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange increased 94¢ to settle at $60.23/bbl on Mar. 20. The contract for June delivery increased 90¢ to settle at $60.48/bbl.
NYMEX natural gas for April decreased 5¢ to settle at $2.82/MMbtu.
Ultralow-sulfur diesel for April gained 1¢ to $2/gal. The NYMEX reformulated gasoline blendstock for April gained 2¢ to $1.91/gal.
Brent crude for June delivery increased 85¢ to settle at $68.27/bbl.
The gas oil contract for April rose $9.25 to $618.50/tonne on Mar. 20.
The average price for the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ basket of crudes was $67.54/bbl on Mar. 20, up 29¢.
