The prompt Brent Futures contract saw a stable start to the morning, rangebound between $90.40/bbl and $90.90/bbl before seeing a strong correction downwards from 09:30 BST to settle at $90.06/bbl at 10:20 BST. In the headlines today, the US government has raised its forecast for U.S crude oil output, anticipating an increase of around 280 kbpd to 13.21 mbpd in 2024, up by 20 kbpd from an earlier forecast published by the EIA. The EIA has also stated that it anticipates Brent crude prices to average $88.55/bbl in 2024, up from a previous forecast of $87/bbl. In other news, Mexico’s slashing of crude oil exports to increase availability for new domestic refineries has caused U.S. imports of the Mexican grade to slump to the lowest level on record, with EIA statistics highlighting a fall in weekly imports to 209 kbpd in the week to April 05. The prompt and 6-month Brent futures spreads are at $0.89/bbl and $4.97/bbl, respectively.
