London — Oil prices fell on Tuesday, weighed down by US President Donald Trump’s plan to sell off half the country’s huge oil stockpile, threatening a future glut even as Opec and its allies cut output to try and tighten the market. Brent crude ended a run of four consecutive days of gains to trade 36c lower at $53.51 a barrel at 8.31am GMT. US light crude was down 33c at $50.80. The White House plan to sell off half of the nation’s 688-million barrel oil stockpile from 2018 to 2027 aims to raise $16.5bn and help balance the budget. The budget, to be delivered to Congress on Tuesday, is only a proposal and may not take effect in its current form. "Congress needs to agree to this which is rather uncertain," said Carsten Fritsch, commodity analyst at Commerzbank. "But, of course, it could weigh on the back end of the forecast." A release of US strategic reserves could jolt an already unbalanced oil market and undermine attempts by oil cartel Opec and other producers, including Russia,...
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