WTI looks to settle below $57 after EIA report shows record crude production in US

• Uninspiring data from China doesn’t allow crude oil prices to rise.
• EIA says US crude oil stocks increased by 2.2 million barrels.
• OPEC kept 2020 global oil demand growth outlook unchanged.  

Crude oil prices gained traction during the first half of the day and the barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) reached a fresh weekly high of $57.75 before reversing its direction during the American trading hours.

Earlier in the day, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in its latest report announced that it kept its  forecast for 2020 global oil demand growth unchanged at 1%, or 1.08 million barrels per day (bpd) to provide a boost to crude oil. Furthermore, OPEC noted that the surplus in 2020 would be around 70,000 bpd if OPEC kept the production at November’s rate,  down from 340,000 bpd surplus in September report.

Oil production and inventories continue to rise in US

However, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) in its weekly publication said that crude oil stocks in the United States increased by 2.2 million barrels per day in the week ending November 8 and crude production rose by 200,000 barrels per day  to a weekly record of 12.8 million bpd to weigh on the WTI. As of writing, the WTI was down 0.6% on the day at $56.95.

Furthermore, the data from China on Thursday showed that both industrial production and retail sales increased less than expected on a yearly basis in October to revive concerns over weakening energy demand in world’s second-largest oil consumer.  

Technical levels to watch for