The price of the WTI crude oil futures is settling at $70.17. That's down -$1.12 or -1.54%. The low price today reached $70.10. The high price was at $71.77.
For the week, the price fell $1.57. The price last week settled that $71.74.
Crude oil prices recorded a second consecutive week of declines, impacted by the strength of the US dollar and sparse news. Prices initially rose due to Saudi Arabia's commitment to production adjustments but were later pressured by increases in US fuel stocks and disappointing Chinese export data. The surprise contraction in the Canadian labor market, coupled with weak Chinese inflation data, may have also contributed to the drop in prices towards the end of the week.
In the US, Baker Hughes recounts were little changed in the current week after steady declines this year. Oil rigs increased by one to 556, while natural gas rigs decreased by two to 135, resulting in a total decrease of one rig to 695.
Looking to next week, factors such as demand during the summer driving season and upcoming macro events like US CPI, FOMC, ECB, US Retail Sales, and BoJ will be key in determining oil price movements.
Meanwhile, the US Department of Energy (DoE) plans to issue a new solicitation to purchase an additional 3 million barrels of crude oil for the strategic stockpile. These barrels are scheduled for delivery in September. In August, the DoE awarded contracts for the purchase of 3 million barrels of crude oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) at an average price of $73 per barrel.
