Benchmark U.S. oil prices fell after an Energy Information Administration (EIA) report showed inventories at Cushing rose last week, Bloomberg reported Dec. 17.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures dropped 1.9%. Inventories at Cushing, Okla., the delivery point for WTI futures, rose 2.92 million to 27.8 million, the highest level since March, the EIA said. Prices also decreased as Russia reiterated that it will keep production steady, echoing OPEC’s strategy of refraining from curbing supply to tackle a global surplus.

WTI for January delivery declined $1.05 to $54.88 a barrel at 10:31 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices dropped as low as $53.60 on Dec. 16.

Brent for February settlement declined 27 cents, or 0.5%, to $59.74 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange with volume 23% below the 100-day average. The January contract expired yesterday at $59.86, the lowest settlement since May 2009.

Oil has slumped about 45% this year as a surge in shale drilling lifted U.S. output to the fastest pace in three decades amid slowing growth in world demand. Members of OPEC including Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest exporter, have resisted calls from producers such as Venezuela and Ecuador to reduce output to stem the price drop.

Crude Stockpiles

U.S. crude supply fell 847,000 barrels last week, the EIA said. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg expected a drop of 2.25 million. Crude stockpiles decreased to 379.9 million barrels last week.

The price collapse is contributing to a currency crisis in Russia, which relies on energy exports for half its budget. Sanctions imposed by the U.S. and European Union over the conflict in Ukraine also spurred Russia’s largest capital outflows in six years as its economy nears recession. By keeping oil output unchanged, Russia is matching a strategy by OPEC, which said Nov. 27 it won’t curb production.

Crude output from Russia, the world’s largest crude producer, will be similar to this year’s 10.6 million barrels a day in 2015, according to Energy Minister Alexander Novak.

“The price will stabilize itself,” Novak told reporters at a meeting of the OPEC Forum in Doha, the Qatari capital. “Some investment projects by oil companies may be reconsidered, but so far they have not adjusted anything.”

Iran is said to be offering shipments to Asia at the deepest discount in at least 14 years, according to four people with knowledge of the decision.

National Iranian Oil Co. will ship light crude to Asia at $1.80 a barrel below a regional benchmark in January, according to the people. Its official selling price for December was at a premium of 13 cents. Similar discounts were offered earlier this month by the state oil companies of Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait.