(Bloomberg) -- Oil pared its fifth straight weekly loss on optimism that OPEC+ will deepen output cuts, even as crude’s market structure signaled increasing over-supply amid a virus-driven hit to global demand.
OPEC+ is waiting for Russia to respond to a recommendation by a panel of experts from the coalition for additional supply curbs and the extension of current reductions until the end of the year. Brent oil’s contango has continued to steepen, a market structure indicating plentiful supply will persist, as the deadly outbreak dents travel and saps consumption of fuels and crude.
Oil majors including Total SA (PA:TOTF) and BP (LON:BP) Plc are projecting a significant hit to global demand this year due to the virus, with Chinese consumption already cut by about a fifth since the outbreak. Futures are down almost 20% since early January, while U.S. crude inventories continue to expand.
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Brent rose 39 cents, or 0.7%, to $55.32 a barrel on the London-based ICE (NYSE:ICE) Futures Europe exchange as of 10:23 a.m. in Singapore after climbing as much as 0.9% earlier. The contract is down about 5% this week, set for the longest losing streak since November. West Texas Intermediate added 0.7% to $51.31.
