West Texas Intermediate crude held ground near the lowest level in two weeks on Thursday, following the biggest slump in two months. Brent futures were little changed. The energy markets took a breather this morning from overnight rout triggered by news that Washington announced an unexpected plan for a test release of strategic oil reserves, while weekly data showed a sharp increase in crude stockpiles. The news struck the oil markets yesterday, and particularly U.S. crude prices, falling more than 2% settling near its lowest level in two weeks. As of 04:02 a.m. ET: - WTI Crude rose 0.16% to $98.16 a barrel - Brent Crude rose 0.20% to $108.24 a barrel The US will hold its first test sale of rude from its emergency oil stockpile since 1990 -- news that helped ease fears of any possible disruption in supply if the crisis between Russia and Ukraine intensities. Concerns over slowdown in oil demand is still evident in the markets, as traders continue to weigh the impact of cold winter on gas storage, while risks from the unfolding crisis in Ukraine are keeping prices in check for the mean time. Yesterday, the Energy Information Administration (EIA)`s weekly report yet offered a gloomier outlook for oil demand, showing that stockpiles of crude surprisingly rose 6.2 million barrels last week, its biggest weekly increase since the week ending Jan. 24. The EIA report kept the led on any price gains, and infect weighed heavily on the U.S. crude prices. However, the benchmarks drew some support from the slightly improved outlook from world oil demand by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), raising its forecast for a second straight month as economic growth accelerates in Europe and the US. The OPEC said global demand will rise by 1.14 million bpd in 2014, compared with 50 thousand bpd projected a month ago.
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 09:21:03 +0000
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