Oil barrel price falls again, below $20 in New York and OPEC+

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - Oil prices fell on Wednesday on international markets to around 28 US dollars, under pressure from estimates that the agreed supply cut will not fully neutralize the huge drop in demand due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In the London market, the price of a barrel fell by 1.18 USD compared to the previous close, to 28.42 USD. In New York, a barrel was traded at a price 43 cents lower, at 19.68 USD.

Estimates that the coordinated supply cut by leading producers will not be enough to neutralize the devastating impact of the coronavirus pandemic on demand have shaken the "black gold" market.

Officials and sources from OPEC+ suggest that the IEA, as an advisory agency for the energy of the most developed countries in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), could support the agreement by announcing the purchase of several million barrels of oil for strategic reserves.

This did not happen on Wednesday. The agency stated in its report that it is still awaiting more details on some planned production cuts and proposals for the purchase of strategic reserves.
"The US, India, China, and South Korea have offered or are considering such purchases," said the IEA.

The report from that agency was followed by US data on another significant jump in oil inventories last week, by as much as 13.1 million barrels, according to the American Petroleum Institute.

Separately, OPEC announced that the price of a barrel of the reference basket of its member countries' oil on Tuesday was 19.70 USD, which means it fell by 1.48 USD compared to the previous trading day.