Oil prices slipped on Friday in quiet trade with the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday limiting activity, while investors awaited a meeting of OPEC and its allies next week that may result in the extension of an output cut agreement to support the market. Brent crude futures declined 28 cents, or 0.4%, at $63.59 a barrel by 0547 GMT. Brent futures are set for a slight gain of 0.3% for the week, the fourth weekly increase, during which prices have climbed 3.1%. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were down 15 cents, or 0.3%, at $57.97 a barrel. For the week, WTI is set to gain 0.4%, the fourth weekly increase, during which prices have risen 3.2%. Next week’s meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia, a group known as OPEC+, is high on investors’ list of things to watch. The group has agreed to cut its output by 1.2 million barrels per day through to March to support prices and analysts expect the agreement to be extended as U.S. production keeps hitting records. “It is highly probable that the group will rollover the deal in its current form until at least the end of 2020, but we see limited scope for a new round of cuts, in light of uneven compliance and diminishing returns,” Fitch Solutions said in a note.
Oil slips amid slow holiday trade before OPEC+ meeting
Published on: November 30, 2019 6:30 AM