Shrunken US oil inventories point to chronic under-supply

The market remains chronically under-supplied with OPEC and U.S. shale firms unable or unwilling to meet rapidly recovering demand at prevailing price levels.(File pic shows oil storage at Cushing Oklahoma. - Reuters)

LONDON: U.S. petroleum inventories have continued to slide over the last month and are well below their normal seasonal levels, which has helped push oil prices to their highest since 2014.

The market remains chronically under-supplied with OPEC+ and U.S. shale firms unable or unwilling to meet rapidly recovering demand at prevailing price levels.