Oil prices slip on concerns over Norway supply risk, US hurricane Delta
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Oil prices fell on Friday, slipping at the end of a week of big gains made on the risk that supplies from Norway could be slashed by up to 25 percent due to a strike by oil workers in the oil-producing European country.
Norwegian oil workers are considering a strike action following disagreements between Laderne, the Norwegian Organisation of Managers and Executives and the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association,threatening around a quarter of the country’s oil and gas output.
Brent was down by 14 cents at $43.20 a barrel having gained more than three percent on Thursday, U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude also fell 13 cents to $41.06 after also gaining more than three percent on Thursday.
On the other hand, nearly 1.5 million barrels of daily output has been halted so far in the U.S and producers have evacuated oil production facilities as well due to reports of an impending Hurricane Delta, forecast to strike the Gulf Coast within hours.
“Non-OPEC production is going to take a big hit over the next couple of weeks and this will continue to drive the rebalancing of the oil market,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA.
Mohammad Barkindo, secretary general of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC),has however assured oil investors and stakeholders that the worst was over for the oil market, following a price and demand collapse this year attributed to the global coronavirus pandemic.