IEA says global oil stocks at record high, may weigh on oil prices

Global oil inventories hit a record near-3bn barrels at the end of September, the industrialised world’s energy watch-dog said on Friday.

That came on the back of a counter-seasonal stock build of 13.8 million barrels in OECD commercial oil stocks, despite the fact that inventories grew at a slowed pace in the third quarter.

In its Oil Market Report for November the International Energy Agency said the world’s thirst for oil would fall to 1.2m barrels per day in 2016, down from the 1.8 mb/d pace seen in 2015, as several transitory props give way.

However, supplies from outside the Organisation for Petroleum Exporting Countries was set to decline by the same amount, mainly due to falling US light ‘tight-oil’ output.

Global oil output stood at 97 mb/d in October and that from the oil producing cartel at 31.76 mb/d.

The so-called ‘call’ on OPEC – the estimated amount needed to balance demand and supply – was increased by 0.2 mb/d to 31.3 mb/d.

Refining margins remained elevated despite the inventory situation.

Among the topics covered in the November OMR were Iraq's advances in the European market and the implications of US President Barack Obama's rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline.

As of 11:40 front month Brent crude futures were bouncing back by 1.388% to $44.68 per barrel on the ICE.