WTI drops below $71.50 after the first US election results

The stronger Greenback exerts some selling pressure on the USD-denominated Oil price. 

Investors await the outcome of the US presidential election as polls were closing in the US. 

West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the US crude oil benchmark, is trading around $71.35 on Wednesday. The WTI price edges lower as the US presidential election polls were closing in the United States.

According to CNN, Former US President Donald Trump will win the key race of Florida, while Kamala Harris picks up Massachusetts and Maryland. Harris and Trump each need at least 270 electoral votes to win the presidency.

Meanwhile, the US Dollar (USD) rises to 104.25 versus a basket of other currencies as Trump trades continue to rally as Trump odds improve. A stronger Greenback makes oil more expensive in other countries.

On Sunday, a larger group called OPEC , consisting of OPEC members plus other oil-producing countries, agreed to extend their oil production cut to 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd) until the end of December 2024. The countries also reiterated their commitment to “achieve full conformity” with their production targets and to compensate for any overproduction by September 2025.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) weekly report showed crude stocks rose last week. Crude oil stockpiles in the United States for the week ending November 1, increased by 3.132 million barrels, compared to a decline of 0.573 million barrels in the previous week. The market consensus estimated that stocks would increase by 1.8 million barrels.