Energy Literacy Advocates Newsroom

The Associated Press - The weight of promised supply cuts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) on price is debatable, based upon market reactions. Many experts predict that oil will sink to $30 per barrel, given dire economic predictions.

Trading today hovers at $40 per barrel. According to the Associated Press, a report Tuesday by the American Petroleum Institute, the industry's trade association, is expected to show that oil stocks rose to 2.9 million barrels last week, according to the average of estimates in a survey of analysts by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos. The U.S. Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reports its inventory data on Wednesday. The data is expected to show that US crude inventories rose by 2.5 million barrels in the week ending January 30, according to a Thomson Reuters poll of analysts.

Oil stocks have grown more than 20 million barrels in the last four weeks, evidence the nation's worst recession in more than 25 years may be deepening. Refiners are buying much less crude with demand for their products like gasoline falling. That has led to rising gas prices even with the price of oil near five-year lows.

To read the full Associated Press article, click here.

Labels: economy, oil companies, oil price, oil supply/demand