- Oil prices traded lower on Wednesday morning following an over $3/Bbl rally from Friday’s close
- The U.S. dollar gained strength, adding pressure on commodities
- The American Petroleum Institute (API) on Tuesday reported another surprise build in crude stocks of nearly 1 MMBbl
- Government data is due at 9:30 AM CST
- The French government said it might step in to protect households if gasoline and diesel prices keep soaring, Finance Minister Bruno Le Marie said (Bloomberg)
- Europes energy crunch is putting European governments under pressure from consumers to alleviate the surge in energy costs
- France has already announced a temporary freeze in regulated gas prices for households
- Iraq’s Oil Minister, a member of OPEC, said an oil price at $75/Bbl to $80/Bbl would be fair for all (Bloomberg)
- Crude at $100/Bbl wouldn’t be a “steady state” for the market, Ihsan Abdul Jabbar said during the Energy Intelligence Forum
- AEGIS notes that on Monday, OPEC+ decided not to supply the globe with more than its previously agreed-upon 400 MBbl/d hikes, despite calls for more of their crude amid a tight oil market