Oil Prices Decline as Saudi Provides Supply Alternative
Oil prices fell Thursday as Saudi Arabia’s efforts to provide additional crude supplies to Asian buyers through Oman eased concerns over disruptions to Middle Eastern oil flows.
International benchmark Brent crude futures for November delivery traded at $103.99 a barrel, down 1.74% from the previous close of $105.83.
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for October delivery decreased 1.64% to $100.75 a barrel from $102.43.
Saudi Arabia is offering additional crude loadings to Asian refiners through ship-to-ship transfers off Oman’s Sohar port, according to international media outlets.
The move is expected to help offset some of the supply disruptions caused by attacks on Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline, which transports crude to the Red Sea port of Yanbu.
Oil prices had climbed to around four-month highs earlier this week after the attacks prompted the suspension of crude loadings at Yanbu.
However, tensions in the Middle East remain elevated, while oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb remain well below pre-war levels.
Prices were also pressured by a stronger US dollar after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 25 basis points to 4% and signaled a hawkish policy outlook.
Meanwhile, US commercial crude oil inventories fell for a third consecutive week, although the 600,000-barrel draw was smaller than market expectations of a 1.6 million-barrel decline.
