2014.07.0323:50:06UTC+00Crude global prices sinking behind safe supplies

With the situation in both Iraq and Libya settling down, prices of oil benchmarks look on track to record yet another weekly decline.

Contracts of WTI for August fell for the sixth consecutive day yesterday and closed to its lowest in nearly a month of $104.06 per barrel. It was hovering at around the same value at the New York Mercantile Exchange today at $104.02 to contribute to this week’s 1.7% drop in value. The last time the US benchmark had a comparable losing streak was more than two years ago in May 2012.

Brent is facing similar conditions with its futures for the same period dropping by 2% this week. A barrel of the European standard was trading at $111.01 on the ICE Futures Europe exchange in London. It has so far seen its premium over the WTI narrow from the end of last week’s $7.56 to today’s $6.96.

Concerns over a disruption of supply coming from Iraq have been put to rest in recent days due to the Islamist insurgents being limited to the north. The three quarters of Iraq’s production that lies in its southern regions have mostly been spared and has allowed the country to pump enough crude to be the second largest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in June.

Over in Libya, rebels have announced the re-opening of two previously blockaded oil ports which they have held since last year to show support for the country’s new government. With its civil war coming to a close, Libya is looking to improve their status as the smallest contributor to the OPEC.