 鲜花( 21)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
Another Big Reason to Think Oil Prices Aren't Going Up Soon0 e6 e9 M7 Z' l! L$ `0 a
; }7 Y; X$ q, }3 k' \
by Tom Randall
; Q6 z/ |6 i5 i% i; M: h( b7 `
Oil just had its first weekly decline in a month, breaking a rally in crude prices. A bit of context: After what's happened over the last year, "rally" seems a bit of an overstatement.
/ p1 W& m7 D3 p) p: f& M* DOil 'Rally' n. P! Z. I& n% F
( f C7 z' [* Y0 HOne big factor that may be driving prices down this week: The U.S. is pumping so much oil it's running out of places to stash it. B) B+ }7 B$ y* I" A: h) q/ g) F1 i
Crude oil in storage in the U.S. has jumped to the highest levels in at least 80 years, according to a Bloomberg Industries analysis. The EIA this week reported that U.S. inventories rose 7.7 million barrels to 425.6 million. That's more than 20 percent higher than the five-year average.
# C7 ^" x: g+ t+ f% ]" TU.S. Oil Inventories Reach 80-Year High( o" r! `3 ~* m0 _9 w# n) U1 @
9 H4 t4 S) z! Q9 T: |4 q
The buildup of supply has been "colossal" and is responsible for oil prices falling this week, Thomas Finlon, director of Energy Analytics Group LLC, told Bloomberg News. ! @; x8 c4 _; k6 |6 m- F% @
Winter weather and refinery outages have contributed to the supply glut. Even when those conditions subside, topped-out inventories and continued production growth may continue to suppress oil prices for the near- and medium-term, according to Bloomberg Industries. " ]7 @( H; @* p: |- _7 m
Meanwhile, the U.S. is pumping oil at a faster pace than any time since 1972.
9 f$ f% z9 ^2 [; C7 I: @: B
3 F# \9 Y3 z1 Y. L' O7 k! [U.S. oil production since 1983. Source: EIA! t3 S1 k; _+ i# F
" Z6 w! `4 ?, M6 g6 l+ D
|
|