WTI crude futures stabilized near $91 per barrel on Thursday after falling 4% in the previous session, as traders weighed a modest supply increase from OPEC+ against rising US crude inventories and signs of declining US gasoline demand. The group of major producers agreed to raise oil output by a meager 100,000 barrels a day in September and warned of “severely limited” spare capacity, in a setback to US President Joe Biden’s attempts to convince Arab leaders to pump more crude.
Meanwhile, official data from the EIA showed that US crude stockpiles expanded by about 4.5 million barrels last week despite expectations for a 629,000 barrel decline. The same report also indicated that Americans are now driving less than they did in the summer of 2020 despite pandemic restrictions during that period, with surging inflation continuing to weigh on demand, as observed by Bloomberg.