Oil prices steady ahead of OPEC+ meeting

Oil drilling rigs

Oil prices held ground today, Aug. 3, as investors await the expected OPEC+ meeting later today, in addition to the anticipation of the US stockpile report, amid worries about a slowdown in demand.

Brent crude futures for October delivery settled at $100.49 a barrel at 09:14 am Makkah times, with US crude futures for September delivery holding ground at $94.37 per barrel.

Markets are projecting OPEC and its allies to make a modest increase in production or keep levels unchanged in September due to weak demand expectations and recession fears. Sources told Reuters that the group cut its forecast for the oil market surplus by 200,000 barrels per day to a daily oil output of 800,000 barrels this year.

A report issued by the American Petroleum Institute (API) on Tuesday showed that crude oil inventories rose by 2.2 million barrels in the week ended July 29, while stocks of gasoline and distillates declined by 200,000 and 350,000 barrels, respectively.

Official data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) is due later today, with inventories set to drop by 1.4 million barrels.

Meanwhile, investors are closely monitoring the fallout from US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, which saw Beijing announcing military exercises and economic restrictions on the island in response to the visit that China deems an encroachment on its territory.