Home Business Oil and Gas Oil prices fall amid rising U....

Oil prices fall amid rising U.S. fuel stocks and demand concerns

Oil and Gas

Business Honor
13 June, 2025

Oil prices decline as U.S. fuel inventories rise; OPEC+ output and trade tensions weigh.

Oil prices dropped lower as it was pressured by an important build in U.S. gasoline and diesel records having a careful outlook on global energy demand. Brent crude settled down 77 cents or 1.2%, at $64.86 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude declined 56 cents or 0.9% to $62.85.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a sharp increase in fuel stockpiles. Gasoline inventories jumped by 5.2 million barrels well above the 600,000-barrel rise analysts had expected. Distillate stocks, which include diesel and heating oil, climbed 4.2 million barrels quadrupling expectations. The expected loss of one million barrels in crude oil inventories has been greatly exceeded by the actual drop of 4.3 million barrels.

Giovanni Staunovo, a UBS analyst, pointed out that the report shows robust refinery operations but sluggish demand. He also stated that after the Memorial Day break, the sharp rise in refined product stockpiles showing that supply is outpacing demand. Additionally, OPEC+ intentions to increase output by 411,000 barrels per day in July are attracting the attention of investors.

At a time when the outlook for the world economy is improving, the action might increase supply pressures. President Trump recently accused Beijing of reversing course on tariff talks, showing the ongoing trade tensions between the United States and China. Citing growing trade frictions, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has lowered its prediction for global growth.

In the meantime, recent wildfires in Canada are lessening their impact on oil production. As conditions at its Jackfish 1 oil sands facility improved, Canadian Natural Resources confirmed that it had started up again. Analysts are still worried overall, pointing to a possible oversupply situation and slow demand growth, particularly if economic and geopolitical uncertainty continues.