Oil prices edged up today after a steep drop in US crude inventories, but another record day for Covid-19 cases worldwide kept gains in check.
US crude oil inventories fell by 10.6 million barrels last week to 526 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration said, in their largest drawdown since December. Net US crude imports fell 1 million barrels per day to 1.9 million bpd, the EIA said. "There's an assumption those tankers pretty much let go of all their oil and so the expectation is that the OPEC cuts are going to lead to bigger draws in the United States," said Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.
"The virus is spreading like wildfire across the Americas while Europe and Asia are displaying worrying signs of a second surge in cases," said Stephen Brennock of oil brokerage PVM.