Crude Oil futures fell Thursday, handing back early gains after Energy Department data showed a surprise increase in US oil stockpiles. Nymex light, sweet crude for February delivery recently traded 85 cents, lower at $98.51 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude on the ICE Futures exchange traded 80 cents lower, at $106.76 a barrel.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said Thursday that US oil inventories rose by 3.9 million barrels in the week ended Dec. 23. Analysts, on average, expected stockpiles fell by 2.2 million barrels. The data, which also showed a drop in implied demand for fuel products, suggested that the massive 10.6 million stockpile decline in the week-earlier report was a one-time event linked to year-end inventory shuffling by refineries. Stockpiles of distillates, which include heating oil and diesel, increased as well, by 1.2 million barrels. Gasoline stockpiles fell by 700,000 barrels after analysts had expected a 500,000-barrel drop.
The data forced a retreat from the $100 a barrel mark that oil prices have stuck to for much of December. Improving economic data in the U.S., the world’s largest oil consumer, has created expectations of rising demand. But weakness in Europe continues to drag down crude and other commodities as investors worry about the consequences of the region’s debt crisis.
EasyForexNews Research Team