The price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI), a benchmark for the price of oil, has set a new low in this evenings session following the announcement from US President Donald Trump that the country was expecting to see extended social distancing until at least April 30.
The price of WTI broke below the level of $20.00, falling as low as $19.90 before rebounding to the mid 20’s in Sunday evening trading. Demand continues to be limited for oil as the ongoing coronavirus pandemic continues across the globe, with global infections climbing to 721,412 as of Sunday evening.
Future prospects for oil aren’t currently looking promising either, with reports indicating that storage facilities are rapidly filling at rates five times that of what was seen during the 2015 oil price glut. Current estimates project that there is less than 10 weeks until storage for oil across the US will be at capacity due to excess production amid the current demand glut.
As a result, the race is on to the potential for negative oil pricing with producers hesitant to cut production outright. For Canadian producers, the potential for that reality is all to real as the price of Western Canadian Select sunk as low as $5.03 per barrel Friday. Current pricing, as per BNN Bloomberg, sits at $5.06 per barrel for WCS, however that data is delayed.
WTI last traded at $20.66.
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