OPEC’s oil production spiked to a 3-year high in November

Refinery crude runs USOICR=ECI fell 151,000 barrels per day as utilization rates USOIRU=ECI dropped 1.4 percentage points to 93.1 percent of total capacity, EIA data showed.

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) on Thursday estimated a contraction of 380,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) in non-OPEC supply which is set to average 57.14m bbl/d in 2016, a downward revision of 250,000 bbl/d from its previous estimate.

In the past OPEC has responded to price falls by curbing production.

The Wall Street Journal notes that the November figures, which were driven mainly by record Iraq production levels of 4.3 million bpd, are further proof that OPEC “has no plans to slow down its furious output”.

OPEC members pumped 31.7 million barrels of oil per day in November, keeping oil prices down in the past two years.

West Texas Intermediate, the US benchmark price for crude oil, was down 0.6 percent to $36.93 per barrel.

Moreover, the expected production ramp-ups by Iran and Libya in the coming months, by around 500,000 barrels per day each in the initial stage, will further inundate an already oversaturated market, said analysts.

“We have downgraded our Brent oil price forecast from $54 per barrel to $51 per barrel for 2016 on the basis of a weaker end to 2015 than previously anticipated”.

Brent North Sea crude for January was up 36 cents at $40.62 a barrel, as dealers hunted for bargains after prices fell to their lowest in almost seven years this week.

“They’ve said to the free market, you price this stuff, we have lost our capability”.

Brent crude oil futures fell below $39 per barrel for first time since December 2008 on Friday as the International Energy Agency (IEA) warned that global oil oversupply could worsen in the new year. The recent price brings its past 5-day performance at -14.13 percent and trades at an average volume of 1.34M shares.

The new December monthly report suggested however that its ploy may be taking longer than expected to bite, with the cartel obliged to increase its forecast for 2015 non-OPEC production.

Analysts said a sharp fall in the dollar on Wednesday may also have spurred some buying as weakness in the U.S. currency makes dollar-priced oil cheaper.

OPEC increased its crude output to its highest level in over three years as it pushed forward with its strategy of protecting its market share and pressuring competing producers.