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Nov. 20 (UPI) -- Crude oil prices were much lower Tuesday morning in sympathy with equity markets but WTI futures may eventually stabilize at $55 per barrel in coming sessions as the market awaits a production cut decision by OPEC, an analyst said. Just after 10:00 a.m. EST, WTI front-month was trading 2.8 percent lower, at $55.58 per barrel, while Brent front-month traded at $65.12, or 2.5 percent lower.
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By 10:10 a.m. EST the WTI front-month traded as low as $54.36, or nearly 5 percent lower, while Brent crude oil futures traded at $64.02, or 4.2 percent lower.
"Oil prices move lower as equity markets sell off, however $55 looks like near term support," Amir Hekmati, oil futures spec trader at Lucid Energy, told UPI early Tuesday, before the declines had deepened below that level.
The Dow Jones index was 2.3 percent lower, or over 570 points, at 24,443.83 at 10:10 a.m. EST. It had declined 400 points on Monday.
Equities are selling off on market concerns about a potential negative impact on worldwide economic expansion from rising U.S. interest rates, as well as because of trade sanctions between the U.S. and China, the world's two biggest economies.
A slowdown in economic expansion worldwide would similarly affect crude oil consumption, at a time when projected crude oil production, particularly in the U.S., has led to concern that the crude oil market would be oversupplied in 2019.
"I expect this level to hold as the market awaits the Dec 6 OPEC decision," Hekmati added. Nations that make up the OPEC will meet in Vienna to decide on what action to taken after plunges in crude oil prices, with Brent front-month futures declining from $86 per barrel in early October to its current $64 per barrel.
The market has speculated that OPEC will agree on significant production cuts to bring price levels higher.
"I think prices are in consolidation, and [WTI] will reclaim the $60 level. Historically, crude oil has seen a rebound in the December month as well," Hekmati added.
