Mid-Week Review – October 13, 2021

U.S. Oil Prices Continue to Surge, Breaking Seven-Year Record

As demand for energy continues to skyrocket due to the post-COVID recovery, U.S. oil prices have hit $80-a-barrel for the first time in nearly seven years. On Monday, crude oil closed at $80.52 a barrel. The last time oil finished above $80 was October 31, 2014. While seasonal fluctuations in gas prices are typical, with hikes expected during the summer when leisure travel and transportation are at a high, they usually temper by the fall. Click Here to read more from Yahoo News.

Oil Prices Have Topped $80. But Don’t Expect a Spending Bonanza from Shale Drillers
Shale companies are on track to spend a little more money pumping oil next year, but most aren’t opening up the spigots, even as prices top $80 a barrel. Capital investments in U.S. oil patches this year are projected to come in at the lowest levels since 2004, years before the fracking boom made America the world’s top oil producer. Next year, oil companies are set to boost domestic spending 15% to 20%, analysts said. However, that will still be less than they plowed into drilling before the pandemic, and far less than the last time U.S. crude prices reached their current heights in 2014. Click Here to read more from WSJ.

Oil falls on fears faltering economic growth to hit demand

Oil prices edged down on Wednesday as expectations grew that oil demand growth will fall as inflation and supply chain issues strain major economies, though surging prices for power generation fuel limited losses. Brent crude futures fell 58 cents, or 0.7%, to $82.84 a barrel at 1220 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell 48 cents or 0.6% to $80.16 a barrel. Click Here to read more from Reuters.

Oil Supply Adequate For Now, But Larger Supply Crunch Looms

Global oil supply will be enough to meet demand in the short and medium term, but the world is headed towards a supply shortage after 2026 unless the oil industry boosts investment in new projects, participants at last week’s Energy Intelligence Forum 2021 said. In the immediate future and in the next few years, global oil supply will be adequate to meet demand, because of the available spare capacity which the OPEC+ group is currently idling in their deal and the supply expected to come from already sanctioned new projects, according to most of the industry professionals who took part in the forum. Click Here to read more from Oil Price.