(22 NOVEMBER 2018)DAILY MARKET BRIEF 1:Oil prices down on high US inventories

The bear market in crude started early October 2018 and is not ending. The 6 December 2018 OPEC meeting in Vienna will be a key event: the group of 15 could decide to either cut production in the range of 1.4 million barrels per day or stick with the current production plan. We expect oil prices to trade lower, with both Brent crude and WTI heading along 61.70 and 52.80 respectively.

Valued at 1-year low, crude prices continue falling, as US Energy Information Administration data came in on Wednesday with higher inventories, in a continued rise since mid-September. Worries of oversupply and subdued US sanctions against Iran have been weighing on crude prices. Brent and WTI futures continued falling after yesterday’s rise, declining by 1.68% and 1.50% respectively. Asian oil future prices are also dropping, declining 0.45%.