Barclays cuts oil price forecasts

Oil drilling rigs

Barclays lowered its Brent price forecasts today, Aug. 17, to $103 per barrel for 2022 and 2023, down from its previous estimate of $111 a barrel, amid expectations of a crude oil surplus over the near term due to the elasticity of Russian oil supply.

The bank also cut its near-term forecast for US crude prices by $8 per barrel, projecting an average price of $99 per barrel in both 2022 and 2023, Reuters reported, citing a research note by Barclays.

The recent oil sales, according to Barclays, were due to "resilient" Russian oil supplies, together with growing market fears of an economic slowdown or an upcoming recession.

As soon as the EU embargo takes full effect in early 2023, Russian oil supplies are set to drop by 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd), compared with levels prior to the Russia-Ukraine crisis, the bank added.