Brent Oil Below $59 as Producers Fail to Curb Glut

The global price of crude oil fell below $60 a barrel for the first time in five years with almost no signs producers are ready to tackle a glut.

Brent oil slumped 2 percent to the lowest since May 2009 in London. West Texas Intermediate, the grade traded in New York, fell below $55 for the first time in five years before rebounding. OPEC shouldn’t be expected to cut output while other producers continue to expand, the United Arab Emirates energy minister said. U.S. drillers are benefiting as costs fall almost as quickly as prices, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Crude fell about 45 percent this year as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries sought to defend market share amid a U.S. shale boom that’s exacerbating a global glut. The group will refrain from cutting output even if oil prices fall as low as $40 a barrel and will wait at least three months before considering an emergency meeting, U.A.E. Energy Minister Suhail al-Mazrouei said on Dec. 14.

Bloomberg

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