U.S. crude output and inventories may peak this month amid a record drop in rigs exploring for oil, Goldman Sachs Group said. Refiners returning from seasonal maintenance will add about 500,000 barrels a day of demand by July, the Energy Information Administration forecast, helping ease the biggest glut in 85 years. “We’re starting to see production flatten out and soon should begin to see it decline,” Mike Wittner, the head of oil market research at Societe Generale SA in New York, said by phone April 10. “We’ve seen an incredible drop in the rig count.” Futures for May delivery advanced $6.38, or 13 percent, to $53.98 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange in the period covered by the CFTC report. The contract climbed 27 cents to close at $51.91 on Monday. Drilling Reduction Drillers idled oil rigs for the 18th straight week to bring the total count […]