Investing.com - U.S. oil slid lower but remained above the $50 a barrel threshold on Friday, as investors locked in profits from the commodity’s recent climb to a three-week high amid hopes for fresh oil supply cuts.
U.S. crude futures for May delivery were down 0.48% at $50.11 a barrel, just off Thursday’s three-week high of $50.47.
On the ICE Futures Exchange in London, the May Brent contract declined 0.47% to trade at $52.88 a barrel, after hitting a fresh three-week peak of $53.12 a barrel earlier in the session.
Crude prices were boosted following reports this week saying that Kuwait and other members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries support extending production cuts beyond June to balance the market.
OPEC agreed in November last year to curb its output by about 1.2 million barrels per day between January and June. Russia and 10 other non-OPEC producers have agreed to jointly cut by an additional 600,000 barrels per day.
In total, they agreed to reduce output by 1.8 million barrels per day to 32.5 million for the first six months of the year, but so far the move has had little impact on inventory levels.
A joint committee of ministers from OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers will meet in late April to present its recommendation on the fate of the pact. A final decision on whether or not to extend the deal beyond June will be taken by the oil cartel on May 25.
Markets shrugged off Wednesday’s report by the U.S. Energy Information Administration saying that crude oil inventories increased by 867,000 barrels last week to another all-time high of 534.0 million.