Deloitte says oil price to stay below $50 US into 2017

Deloitte says oversupply in the oil marketwill lead to a continued slump in 2016,with the price per barrel staying below $50 USinto 2017before starting a slowriseto $80 US a barrel by 2022.

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The Edmonton Light priceforecast anticipates an average 2016 price of $51 Cdn a barrelkeeping in mind a low exchange rate ispropping up Canadian oil pricesthe company said in a release Wednesday.

Demand for oil has increased this past year, most likely attributed to the drop in prices makingconsumption more affordable.

But the trend is not expected to continue into the next year, according toDeloitte's fourth quarter oil and gas priceforecast.

"We've beentalking about lower oil prices for the better part of the year, but with a warm winter looming, natural gasstorage has reached a five-year high, which is going to further depress gas prices as well," saidAndrewBotterill of Deloitte'sResource Evaluation andAdvisory group.

On the upside,Deloittesays political moves to steer away from coal electricity generation in Alberta could have a positive impact for natural gas in the future once infrastructure is in place.