Oil falls nearly 3% amid talks on releasing reserves — The National

Global oil prices fell by nearly 3% on Friday, October 2, after EU governments discussed a French proposal for an additional release of diesel fuel and crude oil reserves. As The National reports, Brent fell by 2.89% to $99.35 per barrel, while WTI lost nearly 4%, declining to $89.35 per barrel.

France’s proposal

According to Reuters, cited by the publication, EU countries discussed France’s proposal to release 50 million barrels of diesel fuel. It also provides for the possible release by members of the International Energy Agency of 50 million barrels of crude oil. The discussions took place amid US pressure on European countries to increase fuel supplies in order to curb rising prices.

Supplies and risks

The market also reacted to mixed signals regarding supplies from the Middle East. According to preliminary Kpler data, Saudi Arabia increased oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz in September to 2.9 million barrels per day, from about 1 million barrels per day in August.

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At the same time, geopolitical risks persist. The United States announced plans to send a third carrier strike group to the region, led by the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt. According to The National, a separate amphibious group with more than 2,000 US Marines has also headed to the region.

This week, the US Department of Energy offered energy companies loans of up to 40 million barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. This is the latest part of the 172 million-barrel drawdown of the reserve announced in March.