US oil production to peak in the middle of this year

The sharp fall in the number of rigs drilling for oil in the US has been the focus of many headlines over the last few weeks amid speculation about what fewer rigs means for US shale oil production. 

Indeed, US shale oil production growth has slowed for the last four months in a row and the EIA estimates that the increase in April will be just 300 barrels per day. 

Capital Economics notes in a report on Tuesday:

• We expect US oil production to peak in the middle of this year as the backlog of drilled but uncompleted wells is used up. This should help support oil prices, especially in the US, in the second half of this year.
  
  
• Indeed, we expect the price of WTI to be back at $60 per barrel by the end of the year, in line with our forecast for the price of Brent.