Current estimates by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) show that U.S. crude oil production growth in 2019 should basically offset the new production cut that OPEC and partners agreed to launch in a bid to rebalance the market and lift oil out of the bear market. Earlier this month, OPEC and its Russia-led non-OPEC allies reached a deal to reduce their combined oil production by 1.2 million bpd for six months starting January, with an option to review the agreement in April. The 1.2-million-bpd cut is basically the currently expected production growth in the United States for next year. According to EIA’s December Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), U.S. crude oil production is expected to rise to 12.06 million bpd in 2019 from expected average production of 10.88 million bpd this year. This year’s production growth—if the 10.88 million bpd output forecast materializes—would be 1.53 million bpd, on top […]