Oil prices rose on Thursday (Nov 13), pausing after sharp declines in previous sessions, as investors worried about a global supply glut amid upcoming sanctions on Russia’s Lukoil.
At the end of the trading session on November 13, Brent crude futures gained 55 cents to settle at USD 63.24 per barrel, after dropping 3.8% the day before. WTI crude rose 50 cents to USD 59.01 per barrel, trimming part of its 4.2% loss in the previous session.
The United States has imposed sanctions on Lukoil as part of its efforts to pressure the Kremlin into joining peace talks on Ukraine. The sanctions will prohibit transactions with the Russian company after November 21.
However, investors continue to closely monitor concerns about oversupply.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported that U.S. crude inventories rose by 1.3 million barrels in the week ending November 7. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) is expected to release its inventory data later on Thursday.
Oil prices fell more than USD 2 per barrel on November 12 after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said global oil supply would slightly exceed demand in 2026—a shift from the organization’s previous forecast of a deficit.
OPEC said it expects a surplus next year due to stronger-than-expected output growth within OPEC+.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) raised its forecast for oil supply growth for both this year and next in its monthly oil market report on Thursday, signaling an even larger surplus in 2026.
The EIA also said in its Short-Term Energy Outlook on November 12 that U.S. oil production is expected to hit a bigger-than-previously-forecast record this year.
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