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Another Big Reason to Think Oil Prices Aren't Going Up Soon
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6 y) f9 W2 @# U( y2 y5 g0 Eby Tom Randall
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5 l0 I& F; m+ e% LOil just had its first weekly decline in a month, breaking a rally in crude prices. A bit of context: After what's happened over the last year, "rally" seems a bit of an overstatement. 3 f* q5 n6 I3 C, p6 l' J
Oil 'Rally'; h: ~; s6 Z* d( x! x2 M# K
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One big factor that may be driving prices down this week: The U.S. is pumping so much oil it's running out of places to stash it.
" @ [8 y) i8 k% q1 tCrude oil in storage in the U.S. has jumped to the highest levels in at least 80 years, according to a Bloomberg Industries analysis. The EIA this week reported that U.S. inventories rose 7.7 million barrels to 425.6 million. That's more than 20 percent higher than the five-year average. 1 h9 S: x6 S: `; O9 F( ?; Y1 l& [/ }
U.S. Oil Inventories Reach 80-Year High
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The buildup of supply has been "colossal" and is responsible for oil prices falling this week, Thomas Finlon, director of Energy Analytics Group LLC, told Bloomberg News. ; e* A# p$ W% Y" X7 u* w8 A' {" `
Winter weather and refinery outages have contributed to the supply glut. Even when those conditions subside, topped-out inventories and continued production growth may continue to suppress oil prices for the near- and medium-term, according to Bloomberg Industries. " b2 B0 L0 t9 i7 L
Meanwhile, the U.S. is pumping oil at a faster pace than any time since 1972.1 H0 A0 {7 K' a0 H
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U.S. oil production since 1983. Source: EIA
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