Oil's Slippery Slope

The NYMEX nearby futures price of a barrel of crude oil peaked this year at $93.68 on September 27. Notwithstanding the war that started between Israel and Hamas on October 7, the price is down $16.27 from that peak to $77.42. That’s even though Saudi Arabia and Russia reduced their exports during the summer and maintained their cuts through yearend. One reason for this development is that US crude oil field production is back at record highs (chart).