Oil falls after record US shale output forecast
US sanctions on Iran and Venezuela tighten the markets but soaring US shale output offsets some of the disruption
London — Oil fell on Wednesday after the US government said shale output would rise to a record next month, denting a rally that sent prices to their highest this year. Brent futures eased by 53c to trade at $65.92 a barrel by 1.12pm GMT, still within sight of Monday’s high for the year of $66.83. US futures were at $55.77 a barrel, down 31c, having touched a 2019 peak of $56.39 earlier. “Brent is trading in a narrow corridor at around $66.5 per barrel, while WTI is at around $56,” Commerzbank analysts said in a note. “This still leaves them within spitting distance of the three-month high they achieved at the start of the week ... It seems that the sharp rise in oil production in the US is having a slowing effect after all.” The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a monthly report on Tuesday that shale production alone will hit a record 8.4-million barrels per day (bpd) next month, suggesting little chance of a near-term slowdown in overall US crude output. The oil p...
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