Pumpjacks operate near a drilling rig along State Highway 191 between Midland and Odessa. A lower-than-expected read on fourth quarter gross domestic product, hints at a possible higher rate hike from the U.S. Fed and bloated crude oil inventories all created headwinds for the commodities market.The price of oil this week could be in a tug-of-war between lackluster momentum in the U.S.
The amount of total refined products supplied to the market over the four-week period to Feb. 17, a proxy for demand, was down 8.4 percent from the same period last year. Commercial crude oil inventories, meanwhile, are 9 percent above the five-year average for this time of year. President Joe Biden said Friday that efforts to control consumer-level inflation are working, adding that the"fight is not over.”
Oil prices were range-bound last week, however, with West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark for the price of oil, stuck in the mid-$75 per barrel range.