- OPEC+ is slated to meet today to discuss whether to resume a monthly schedule of gradual production cuts or maintain current output cuts
- The cartel agreed to a monthly schedule of output hikes of 500 MBbl/d for the first three months of 2021 but only increased output in January, as demand concerns cause the group to take a more cautious approach
- Lockdowns in Germany, France, and Italy have led to weak oil consumption in Europe. In contrasts, U.S. refiners processed the most crude oil since March 2020 last week
- AEGIS notes, many analysts have said they expect the group to keep output steady, particularly as Iran continues to ramp up output
- Biden's latest infrastructure plan serves as surprise demand boost for oil
- The plan allocates $115B for roads and bridges, which will require lots of Asphalt
- As noted by Bloomberg, because Asphalt is derived from the heaviest hydrocarbons in a barrel of crude, heavy crude grades may see the largest impact, namely Canadian oil sands
- The market received neutral data reported by the EIA on Wednesday
- The EIA reported a draw of (-) 876 MBbls for the week ending March 26, below the estimate of a (-) 928 MBbls draw
- Inventories for the U.S. are now at a surplus of 46.475 MBbls to last year and a surplus of 28.76 MBbls to the five-year average