Oil heads for second weekly loss as Brent falls 2.4% and WTI 2.5%
Key Facts
Oil prices were on track for a second weekly loss on November 13, with Brent at $95.41 a barrel, down one cent at 02:42 GMT, and West Texas Intermediate down 20 cents, or 0.25%, at $88.52. Brent was set to fall 2.4% for the week ending that day, while U.S. crude was headed for a 2.5% loss, according to Reuters. The moves followed a steeper decline the previous week, when Brent fell 16% and WTI 13%. Prices reflected reduced concerns about a renewed large-scale conflict that could disrupt Middle East supplies. But attacks on shipping remained a risk to oil flows, according to the coverage.
U.S. crude inventories rose by 4.7 million barrels to 414.4 million barrels in the week ended November 6, according to Energy Information Administration data cited by Reuters. The increase ran counter to expectations among analysts polled by Reuters, who had forecast a 1.1 million-barrel draw. The coverage said crude and fuel inventories rose as demand for refined products weakened and oil imports increased. The stock build added to pressure on prices as both benchmarks headed for fresh weekly losses. The weekly report for that period was released on November 12, according to the EIA schedule.
Prices weakened as U.S. President Donald Trump commented on the war with Iran, saying on Truth Social that a deal with Tehran was not necessary to end it. Reuters linked the remarks to the continuing blockade of oil shipments and trade and economic sanctions. At the same time, a lower likelihood of renewed large-scale fighting helped ease concerns about regional supply disruptions. That calm, however, did not dispel shipping risks, which remained a counterweight to downward pressure on the market. Reuters said attacks on ships remained a risk to supplies.
Iran's military said on Thursday that 4 oil tankers had been hit by explosions in the Strait of Hormuz after ignoring warnings, Reuters reported. The agency said it could not immediately verify the Iranian account. In a separate development, the Houthis said on Thursday they had attacked a pumping station on Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline, an oil facility in Yanbu and an Aramco building in Riyadh. The announcements kept shipping and oil infrastructure risks in the background of trading, even as the likelihood of a wider conflict receded. Reuters linked the persistence of these risks to the possibility of regional supply disruptions.
EL7 closing data showed both benchmarks rising in the two sessions before the report. Brent closed at $92.76 a barrel on November 11, then at $95.82 on November 12. WTI closed at $86.53 on November 11, before rising to $88.74 the following day. These daily closes put the gains in the two sessions in the context of a weekly trend that still pointed to losses for both benchmarks when Reuters published its report. For the month, the EIA said the average spot price of Brent rose to $124 a barrel in October, up $10 from September.
The EIA said the spot price of Brent fell below $100 a barrel on November 4, as the Saudi East-West pipeline resumed operations and oil continued to flow through the Strait of Hormuz via ship-to-ship transfers off the coast of Oman. It also said attacks on oil tankers around the Middle East disrupted global oil flows and reduced tanker availability, driving freight rates sharply higher. The agency forecast global oil inventories would remain on a building path in the fourth quarter of 2026, after an average draw of 1.2 million barrels per day in the third quarter. As for prices, it expected Brent to stay near $100 a barrel for the rest of 2026. It tied its forecast to most Middle East production outside Iran returning to its pre-conflict average by the middle of the following year.