2017.01.0314:43:00UTC+00Crude Oil Falls Sharply From $55 High

Crude oil futures plunged from their highest since 2015 Tuesday, amid doubts about whether OPEC production cuts will re-balance the oil markets.

OPEC and Russia agreed to output quotas for 2017, but analysts say increased production from the US and Canada may result in a prolonged global supply glut.

Adam Ritchie, a director of consulting firm Petro-Logistics SA, tells Hellenic Shipping News: "I don't think people have fully grasped the scale of the excess inventory that has to clear, so the imbalance between supply and demand needs to be corrected dramatically and for a very long period of time."

A stronger dollar also contributed to oil's decline today.

Feb. WTI oil dropped $1.39, or 2.6%, to settle at $52.33/bbl after rising to $55.24.