Brent crude and WTI: Oil falls for fifth day in a row to hover around $48
Oil prices fell for the fifth day in a row to hover around the $48 per barrel mark today.
Brent crude, the global benchmark, fell 0.4 per cent to $48.2 per barrel this afternoon. West Texas Intermediate crude, the US benchmark, also slumped 0.3 per cent to $48.
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Brent was dragged below $48 earlier due to the strong dollar, as well as Iran's comments regarding ramping up production.
Rising production from another major oil exporter also added to the gloom, with Iraq's deputy oil minister, Fayadh al-Nema, telling he state-run Iraqi Media Network that its oil output has hit 4.7m barrels per day (bpd), while exports are running at a record 3.9m bpd.
"Iraq's production is up and Iran talked about increasing to 2.2 million barrels per day and there's no way that OPEC is going to limit production rises," Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, said.
Investors will now be looking towards a meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, including the former freeze deal rebel Iran, on 2 June in Vienna.
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Talks between Opec and non-Opec productions to agree a freeze deal to shore up oil prices in April collapsed when Saudi Arabia demanded long-term regional rival Iran's participation.
The American Petroleum Institute's weekly data on oil stocks is due out later today, while the Energy Information Administration will release its own estimate tomorrow.