MARKET WATCH: NYMEX crude settles at $63.95/bbl after volatile trading
Light, sweet crude oil for February delivery fell slightly on the New York market after swinging between a high of $64.35/bbl and a low of $63.47/bbl during the Jan. 18 trading session. Brent edged down a few cents, settling above $69/bbl.
US oil production climbed for the week ended Jan. 12 to 9.75 million b/d, up 258,000 b/d, the Energy Information Administration said in its Weekly Petroleum Status Report.
Alaska’s production fell 9,000 b/d for the week to 504,000 b/d while the Lower 48 states produced 9.246 million b/d, up 267,000 b/d from the previous week.
Higher production numbers offset the market’s reaction to dropping oil inventory statistics. EIA estimated crude oil in storage declined by 6.9 million bbl for the week ended Jan. 12, exceeding analyst anticipation of a drop of 2.3 million bbl.
Separately, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said its crude production rose during December 2017 to average 32.42 million b/d, up by 42,000 b/d from November.
OPEC, along with several non-OPEC producers, including Russia, agreed in November 2017 to extend production-cut targets to Dec. 31, 2018, in efforts to reduce world oil supplies to a 5-year average.
Energy prices
The February light, sweet crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 2¢ on Jan. 18 to $63.95/bbl. The March contract decreased 3¢ to $63.89/bbl.
The NYMEX natural gas price for February dropped 4¢ to a rounded $3.19/MMbtu. The Henry Hub cash gas price fell 49¢ to $3.38/MMbtu.
Ultralow-sulfur diesel for February edged down less than 1¢ to a rounded $2.06/gal. The NYMEX reformulated gasoline blendstock for February gained 2.5¢ to a rounded $1.88/gal.
The Brent crude contract for March on London’s ICE declined 7¢ to settle at $69.31/bbl on Jan. 17. The April contract was down 8¢ to $68.92/bbl. The gas oil contract for February held unchanged at $611.75/tonne.
OPEC’s basket of crudes was $67.20/bbl on Jan. 18, up 13¢.
Contact Paula Dittrick at [email protected].
Paula Dittrick | Senior Staff Writer
Paula Dittrick has covered oil and gas from Houston for more than 20 years. Starting in May 2007, she developed a health, safety, and environment beat for Oil & Gas Journal. Dittrick is familiar with the industry’s financial aspects. She also monitors issues associated with carbon sequestration and renewable energy.
Dittrick joined OGJ in February 2001. Previously, she worked for Dow Jones and United Press International. She began writing about oil and gas as UPI’s West Texas bureau chief during the 1980s. She earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in journalism from the University of Nebraska in 1974.
