Crude oil futures fell for a third session Wednesday, extending this week’s losing streak as prices soften ahead of a crucial OPEC meeting in June.
U.S. crude oil and global benchmark Brent are down more than 2% for the week.
Here are today’s energy prices:
- West Texas Intermediate July contract: $77.83 a barrel, down 83 cents, or 1.06%. Year to date, U.S. crude oil has gained 8.7%.
- Brent July contract: $81.97 a barrel, down 91 cents, or 1.10%. Year to date, the global benchmark is up 6.5%.
- RBOB Gasoline June contract: $2.47 a gallon, down 1.49%. Year to date, gasoline futures are up 17.6%.
- Natural Gas June contract: $2.68, up 0.64%. Year to date, gas is up about 7%.
Oil prices are drifting lower in the absence of major developments to guide the market as traders have moved on from geopolitical tensions.
OPEC and its allies, led by Russia, will hold a crucial meeting to review production policy next weekend. A coalition of nations in the broader OPEC+ grouping are cutting 2.2 million barrels per day, which has supported oil prices this year. The group is likely to extend those production cuts as prices soften, according to analysts.
Investors are waiting for U.S. petroleum inventory data later this morning for demand signals and minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest meeting for signs of where interest rates may go.