Brent crude falls below $71 per barrel

Oil prices continue to decline on the morning of March 5 amid OPEC+’s decision to gradually increase production and uncertainty in US foreign trade policy.

According to Report, which cites Interfax, the price of May futures for Brent crude on the London ICE Futures exchange stood at $70.85 per barrel as of 9:15 AM, which is $0.19 (0.27%) lower than the previous closing price. The day before, these contracts had fallen by $0.58 (0.8%) to $71.04 per barrel.

April futures for WTI crude on the electronic trading platform of the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) had dropped by $0.54 (0.79%) to $67.72 per barrel at the same time. During the previous session, they had decreased by $0.11 (0.2%) to $68.26 per barrel.

Brent closed the previous trading session at its lowest level since November, while WTI hit its lowest mark since December. During the March 4 session, Brent prices dropped to their lowest intraday level since September of last year.

OPEC+ has confirmed its plans to gradually phase out voluntary production cuts and increase output starting in April. The production increase will continue until September 2026.

This decision raises concerns about an oversupply in the market, noted Tickmill Managing Director Joseph Darie.

"As production increases, global oil prices will come under pressure, especially if demand does not grow at the same pace," he wrote.