Oil skids $3 a barrel as investors take profits ahead of Opec+ meeting

TOKYO (Reuters) – Oil prices fell by around $3 a barrel in early Asian trade on Thursday as investors cashed in on a recent rally with a key producers meeting later in the day set to pave the way for expected output increases.

Brent crude was down $2.76, or 2.4%, at $113.53 a barrel at 0024 GMT, having risen 0.6% the previous day.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped $2.89, or 2.9%, to $112.37 a barrel, after a 0.5% rise on Wednesday.

The benchmarks have marched higher for several weeks as Russian exports are being squeezed by EU and U.S. sanctions against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine, actions that Russia calls a “special operation”.