Oil prices steadied above last week’s seven-month lows on Monday, hemmed in by a relentless rise in the US supply, bloated global inventories and a surge in demand for short sale contracts that signal investors see potential for a price fall.
Investors in US crude futures and options increased their bets against a further rise in prices, as the number of US oil rigs in operation hit its highest in over three years.
US shale oil output is up around 10 percent since last year, while places like Brazil have also hiked output.
The rise in supplies threatens to scupper efforts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its partners to reduce global oil inventories with production cuts.
Brent crude futures were flat at $45.54 a barrel by 1335 GMT, set for a near 20 percent drop in the first half of the year. It hit a trough of $44.35 on June 21, its lowest level since November.
US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up by just 3 cents at $43.04 a barrel.
“We saw this continued big rise in oil rigs last week and in our view, we do not need a single additional rig for the next 12 months in the US space if we look at balance for 2018,” SEB strategist Bjarne Schieldrop said.

Source: Arab News