Oil Spikes by 3%, As Canada, Nigeria Supply Disruptions Off-set U.S Stockpiles

The U.S. government’s forecast of higher oil demand for 2016 was also supportive, traders said, although the rally in crude was likely to prevent production from falling as sharply in 2017 as predicted earlier.

A series of attacks on Nigeria’s oil infrastructure has pushed crude output close to a 22-year low in Africa’s largest oil producer, Reuters data showed.

In Canada alone, a wildfire that engulfed a sizeable part of Alberta’s oil town Fort McMurray has knocked out an estimated 1.6 million bpd, consultancy Energy Aspects said.

Repair crews on were assessing the damage on Tuesday as nearby oil sands companies looked to resume production.

Data from the American Petroleum Institute was expected to show a half million-barrel build.

“I think we are still in bull market, but I also think the headwinds are increasing,” Scott Shelton, energy broker with ICAP in Durham, North Carolina, said, referring to the heightened volatility in crude futures since April’s rally of 20 percent or more.

This year’s rebound in oil markets has been one of the strongest since the financial crisis, with prices rallying nearly 80 per cent from multiyear lows under $30 in the first quarter, supported by falling U.S. production, supply constraints in Libya and the Americas and a weak dollar.

Since the end of April, however, the rally has stalled at around $45.