Oil Steadies On US Rig Count Drop, Small Crude Build

Oil prices rebounded after the U.S. Energy Information Administration said crude stocks across the country rose 961,000 barrels last week. A preliminary inventory report by industry group American Petroleum Institute had anticipated a 2.6-million barrel rise while a Reuters poll of analysts forecast a 1.2 million build.

Oil services firm Baker Hughes said the U.S. oil rig count fell by nine this week. Oil drillers have cut rigs in 12 of the past 13 weeks, Baker Hughes data showed.

Not all oil-related data on Wednesday was positive.

The EIA said gasoline stockpiles rose 2.5 million barrels, versus the 938,000-barrel build forecast in the Reuters poll.

Inventories of distillates, which include diesel and heating oil, rose by 1.0 million barrels, versus expectations for a 417,000 barrels drop.

While U.S. crude stocks as a whole rose by less than 1 million barrels, the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub for WTI futures alone had a 1.74 million-barrel build, the EIA said. Big Cushing builds tend to have longer-term bearish impact on prices.

"We suspect rallies, if any, will be rather short-lived," said Tariq Zahir, a trader in crude oil spreads at Tyche Capital Advisors in Long Island, New York.


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