Crude Oil Retreats from 4-Week High

WTI crude oil futures fell to $64.2 per barrel on Wednesday, retreating from the four-week high of $65.7 touched earlier in the session amid fresh signs of higher supply. Reports indicated that the OPEC+ group is considering raising their oil output at their meeting over the upcoming weekend, surprising markets that had mostly expected an unchanged level of production. Such a decision would extend the several output hikes by the cartel this year despite calls of waning fuel demand, as major producers and exporters prioritize regaining their market share and increasing their budget revenues through energy sales. In the meantime, data showed that seaborn exports of Russian oil to China rebounded sharply as the world's top importer assumed tankers after a demand pullback from India, largely owed to aggressive tariffs from the United states. The outlook for fuel demand was also dim in the US following a weaker than expected ISM Manufacturing PMI.