Crude traded near $45 a barrel May 8 as Canadian wildfires knocked out about 1 million barrels a day of production, outweighing the new Saudi Arabian oil minister’s pledge to maintain the country’s policy of near-record output.

Oil prices have stabilized on the back of steady demand, the International Energy Agency said in its monthly outlook released April 14.

Oil traded near a four-month high in London, swinging between gains and losses as Iraq said it raised output to a record in March while U.S. production fell.

General Electric Co. could become one of the top players in the oil services and equipment industry if it decides to bid for Baker Hughes Inc.

Oil surged above $40 a barrel in New York for the first time since December as central banks from the United States to Norway signaled they will continue to provide economic stimulus to support demand.

Oil prices will average just over $40 a barrel this year due to subdued demand and the likelihood a tentative agreement by leading producers to freeze output will do little to drain a supply glut, a Reuters poll showed Feb. 29.

New infrastructure projects capable of withstanding severe weather events would be funded through a new tax on oil companies, according to the Obama White House’s fiscal 2017 budget request unveiled Feb. 9.

Oil prices will stay low for as long as 10 years as Chinese economic growth slows and the U.S. shale industry acts as a cap on any rally, according to the world’s largest independent oil-trading house.

A proposal by the Obama administration to get oil companies to pay a $10-per-barrel fee on oil is unlikely to get Republican support in Congress, transportation budget expert Jack Basso told Transport Topics.