| At 10:15 am Singapore time (0215 GMT), the ICE January Brent futures contract was up 40 cents/b (0.49%) from the previous close at $81.64/b, while the NYMEX December light sweet crude contract rose 37 cents/b (0.47%) at $79.38/b.
Since then, the ICE Brent and NYMEX light sweet crude benchmarks have slid by close to 10% as a slew of bearish headlines, particularly the threat of a release of oil reserves by major oil consuming economies, pressured prices lower. Analysts said that traders have mostly priced in the impact of any government action by now.
The US oil rig continued to climb as drillers took advantage of oil prices still hovering at multi-year highs despite recent declines. The domestic oil rig count rose by 16 to 541 for the week ended Nov. 17, energy analytics and software company Enverus said. The gains were led by the Permian, the largest US producing basin at 4.78 million b/d of oil, according to S&P Global Platts Analytics, as it added 12 rigs for a total of 284, reaching its highest count since mid-April 2020. (S&P Global Platts)
China carrying out crude oil release preparations is putting downwards pressure on prompt crude prices. The market is currently left guessing on the size and timing of a possible Chinese strategic petroleum reserve release. (Rigzone)
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