WTI crude oil prices continue to trade bearish into the third straight session on Thursday over worries that the failure OPEC+ to agree on supply cuts could see some member nations break their quota agreements and pump more oil into global markets. At the time of writing, WTI crude oil is trading at around $71.03 per barrel.

Earlier this week, discussions broke down in the meeting between OPEC and its allies after Saudi Arabia and the UAE disagreed on allowing the latter to increase oil production beyond the quotas agreed earlier. Since then, the bullish sentiment that crude oil was enjoying over the past several weeks reversed as traders worried about a rise in supply.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, leading oil nations of the world have been tightening supply in global markets as lockdowns and restrictions drove down oil demand globally. However, with the situation seemingly on its way to improvement, OPEC+ started easing its severe production curbs over the past few months.

Meanwhile, losses in WTI crude oil were limited by a significant drawdown in US crude inventories over the past week. According to the API, crude stockpiles fell by 8 million barrels over the past week, against expectations for a 4 million drop instead, giving traders some hope that demand continues to improve, especially in the world’s largest energy consumer.

Looking ahead, all eyes will be on the release of the official EIA figures that will offer more clarity on oil demand across the US. The data is scheduled for release later in the day.