Saudi Pipeline Restoration Eases Oil Price Pressure

Oil prices continued to decline on September 17 as Saudi Arabia made progress in restoring its vital East-West pipeline, damaged in recent attacks.

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil price fell towards $102 a barrel, down from its previous loss of 3.2% on Wednesday, the most since August 4.

A person familiar with the situation said that Saudi Arabia is seeking to return about half the capacity of the damaged pipeline within days and full operations in six weeks.

Haris Khurshid, chief investment officer at Karobaar Capital LP, cautioned that 'I wouldn't call it an all-clear situation' despite the market getting some capacity back. He noted that 'the market isn't getting its margin for error back.'