Western Canada Select (WCS) crude’s discount to the benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) narrowed slightly on Thursday:
WCS heavy blend crude for December delivery in Hardisty, Alberta, settled at $29.30 a barrel under WTI, according to NE2 Inc, having settled at $29.40 a barrel under WTI on Wednesday.
The WCS discount has been fluctuating around $29 a barrel below WTI this month, after widening sharply in October.
The weakness is being driven by a number of factors including weak refinery demand, competition from cheap Russian crude in Asia and the overhang of crude supply from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve release.
Global oil prices settled 1% higher as tamer-than-expected U.S. inflation data offset worries that renewed COVID-19 curbs in China would hurt fuel demand. (Reporting by Nia Williams; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)