Fitch Solutions maintains Brent crude at $85/barrel for 2023 

Oil drilling rigs

Fitch Solutions kept its 2023 Brent crude price assumptions unchanged at $85 per barrel but cut its outlook for US WTI crude oil slightly to $80 from the $81 a barrel previously expected. 

In a report issued today, March 13, the credit rating agency wrote, “Our increased 2024-2025 oil price assumptions reflect our view that it will take longer for prices to moderate due to tightening supply from Russia and OPEC+’s cautious approach to supply increases.”

However, Fitch Solutions expected the market to adjust gradually, thanks to the growth of non-OPEC oil output, especially in the US.

This is coupled with the prospect of capacity increases in OPEC nations, particularly in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, it added.

As for 2024, the agency revised up its forecast for the price of Brent and US WTI crude to $75 and $70 per barrel, respectively.

“The market is currently broadly balanced, despite China’s gradual reopening, which could potentially increase demand while oil exports from Russia have been re-routed so far, rather than materially reduced. Our long-term assumptions reflect falling long-term demand due to the energy transition,” Fitch Solutions concluded.