Prices for the U.S. crude-oil benchmark marked their lowest settlement in six years on Monday, as investors remained fixated on a supply glut. Prices took a hit despite a report by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries that forecast a drop in U.S. output by the end of the year. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, April crude settled at $43.88 a barrel, down 96 cents, or 2.1%, after tapping a low under $43. Prices for a most-active contract haven’t settled at a level this low since March 11, 2009. Last week, they fell 9.6%. April Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange declined by $1.23, or 2.3%, to end at $53.44 a barrel on the contract’s expiration day. Prices fell 8.5% last week.
The market expects the U.S. Energy Information Administration to report on Wednesday another large weekly build in crude supplies, said Tariq Zahir, a managing member at Tyche Capital Advisors. Oil rig counts posted by Baker Hughes have been falling, but production hasn’t abated significantly, he said. OPEC, in its monthly market report, said that U.S. oil production could start to fall by the end of the year. For now, however, traders appear focused on data that show production continues to grow despite Nymex oil futures dropping by more than half from their mid-2014 peak above $107 a barrel.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve on Wednesday is widely expected to remove its pledge to be “patient” in raising short-term interest rates — paving the way for an interest-rate hike as soon as June. That could provide a boost to the U.S. dollar, with a stronger greenback pressuring prices for dollar-denominated crude. The Brent crude contract for delivery in April expired on Monday, and the April West Texas Intermediate crude contract will expire at the close of Nymex trading on Friday. Both events add to volatility, said Zahir.