Oil rallies above US$80 as U.S. stockpiles fall the most since 2019

Oil prices rallied after government data showed U.S. stockpiles fell the most since 2019 while crude and product exports rose to record highs.

West Texas Intermediate rose as much as 4 per cent to over US$81 a barrel on Wednesday. U.S. crude fell by 12.6 million barrels last week, according to an Energy Information Administration. The draw coincides with record U.S. export crude and products exports. 

“Oil is starting to get its groove back and it looks like both supply and demand drivers could turn bullish for crude,” said Ed Moya, senior market analyst at Oanda Corp. “If China’s Covid rules are slowly eased and OPEC stays the course, crude prices could rally another 5-10 per cent here.”