Oil declined sharply after a significant increase

On Thursday, oil prices showed a sharp decline after the publication of the weekly report on oil reserves in the United States. In addition, traders are waiting for Washington to announce measures to support American consumers amid rising energy prices.

Brent oil quotes fell from the level of $112 per barrel to $105.12 in just a few hours. By Thursday morning, the price had recovered somewhat to $107.22 per barrel. The cost of North American WTI oil decreased from $108 to $100.55 per barrel. The current WTI quote is $102.56. 

Today, the White House is to present a package of measures aimed at reducing energy prices on the American market. The Biden administration is considering releasing approximately 1 million barrels of oil per day from U.S. strategic reserves within a few months to combat rising gasoline prices and supply shortages.

At the same time, analysts note that the rise in prices and other problems caused by the Ukrainian crisis are of a medium- and long-term nature, while the release of oil from strategic reserves is only a short-term solution.

Another factor influencing the oil market was yesterday's report from the US Department of Energy, according to which commercial oil reserves in the country fell by 3.45 million barrels per week. Experts expected a less significant decrease – by 2 million barrels. 

At the same time, gasoline reserves increased by 785,000 barrels and amounted to 238.83 million barrels, distillate reserves increased by 1.4 million barrels to 113.53 million barrels. Analysts predicted a decrease in gasoline stocks by 1.6 million barrels and a drop in distillate stocks by 1.5 million barrels.