Crude oil futures dropped for a fifth straight session loss on Friday, settling at their lowest level since late November, according to a report by Bloomberg MarketWatch.
April West Texas Intermediate crude fell by 79 cents, or 1.6%, to settle at $48.49 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. For the week, prices lost 9.1%, marking the largest loss since the week ending November 4.
May Brent crude, the global benchmark, lost 82 cents, or 1.6% to $51.37 a barrel on London’s ICE Futures Exchange. For the week, Brent crude shed nearly 8.1% for the week.
The sharp selloff this week came after investors grew weary of government data reflecting a robust increase in domestic crude stockpiles and further gains in production output.
On Wednesday, the Energy Information Administration reported an 8.2-million-barrel weekly increase in domestic crude supplies to a record level of 528.4 million barrels. Meanwhile, total crude output rose to their highest level in more than a year.
Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said that there would be “no free rides” for non-OPEC producers, implying that OPEC is unwilling to lose market share to other producers as it works to rebalance the market.
Back on the New York Mercantile Exchange, April natural gas rose 3.4 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at $3.008 per million British thermal units—for the first finish above $3 since February 10. For the week, natural gas rose 6.4%, with gains due to colder weather and forecasts of higher demand.
