All eyes on Opec+ after Biden’s SPR gamble

How the cartel reacts to record release of barrels is the key variable for oil markets

US benchmark WTI crude continued to trade over $78/bl on Wednesday morning, having jumped by c.$2/bl on Tuesday despite the announcement by US president Joe Biden of a 50mn bl release from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) and novel plans for China, India, Japan, South Korea and the UK to also co-ordinate in putting stored supply into the market. Focus is now turning to the potential response by Opec+ to US attempts to cool prices, with some analysts warning of a potential backlash from the cartel. To some extent, the lack of bearish market reaction to Biden’s announcement is because the plan has been so widely trailed in recent weeks that the downward pressure has already manifested