Oil Prices Fall for Fifth Straight Day on Supply Concerns

​Longest Slide Since August
Oil is heading for its longest losing streak in nearly two months. Prices have now fallen for five consecutive sessions, dragged lower by signs that global supplies are about to swell and tip the market into surplus.

Benchmarks Under Pressure
Brent crude slid toward $66 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate traded near $62. The drop comes after a 2.8% slide over the previous four sessions. A big factor: Iraq may soon restart exports from Kurdistan after a two-year halt, putting another 230,000 barrels per day back into circulation.

Glut Fears Dominate
Forecasters say global output is rising faster than demand. OPEC and its allies have been bringing barrels back online, while producers outside the cartel are also boosting supply. The International Energy Agency now warns the surplus could be one of the largest on record heading into 2026.

Traders Lose the Geopolitical Hedge
Without fresh geopolitical shocks to keep prices elevated, crude is drifting. Analysts note that oil often slumps once supply fears outweigh headlines from hotspots like Russia or the Middle East. The Kurdistan pipeline restart only deepened the bearish mood.

Politics in the Mix
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has urged tougher secondary sanctions on countries still trading with Russia. President Trump, meanwhile, pressed European allies to halt purchases of Russian energy — though Washington has notably spared China, Moscow’s top customer, from additional tariffs.

The Bottom Line
​With Iraq barrels set to return and OPEC pumping harder, traders see supply winning the tug-of-war with demand. Unless a new geopolitical shock jolts the market, oil looks set to stay under pressure.