FX.co ★ Oil Pares Gains

On Wednesday, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures marginally decreased, settling around $63 per barrel. This adjustment slightly offset gains observed in the previous session as OPEC+'s strategy to boost production continued to alleviate worries of a tighter global supply. Favorable rains in Canada contributed to slowing wildfires that had previously halted approximately 7% of the nation's oil production, with at least one oil sands operator resuming activities. Mitigating further declines, industry reports revealed a more substantial drop in US crude inventories than anticipated. Stockpiles fell by 3.3 million barrels over the past week, considerably surpassing the predicted 0.9 million-barrel reduction. At the same time, geopolitical tensions bolstered prices. Ongoing concerns regarding potential supply disruptions linked to the Russia-Ukraine conflict remained prominent. Furthermore, an Iranian diplomat suggested that Tehran may likely refuse a US proposal intended to settle a protracted nuclear dispute.