U.S. crude oil prices top $90 a barrel for the first time since November 2022 - CNBC
U.S. crude oil prices top $90 a barrel for the first time since November 2022
Oil prices jumped on Thursday, with U.S. crude topping $90 a barrel, as expectations of a tighter supply grew.
West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) gained 1.6% to $90.04 per barrel, hitting its highest level since November 2022. Brent crude was up 1.5%, at $93.23, reaching a 10-month high.
Saudi Arabia and Russia have extended their oil output cuts to the end of 2023, and the move could result in a substantial market deficit for the rest of 2023, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday.
"From September onwards, the loss of OPEC+ production... will drive a significant supply shortfall through the fourth quarter," the agency said in its monthly report.
Rising crude prices could mean higher gasoline prices at a time when the economy is trying to recover and solve the inflation problem. Inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index, posted its biggest monthly increase this year in August as energy prices fed much of gain, rising 5.6%, an increase that included a 10.6% surge in gasoline.
WTI crude is up almost 3% this week, on pace for the third straight weekly gain. The prices are up about 13% this year.
Earlier this week, the OPEC issued updated forecasts of solid demand and also pointed to a 2023 supply deficit if production cuts remain.
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: petroleum
While electric-powered vehicles may be the ride of the future, oil remains at least for now the dominant fuel for transportation around the world. And after a period of time at the end of the 20th century when oil was subject to wide fluctuations in price, new supplies in North America as a result of non-conventional recovery techniques have helped stabilize prices.