US Oil Hits 12-Year Low On Stockpile Surge, Risk Aversion

Brent settled down 78 cents, or 2.5 percent, at $30.06 per barrel. It fell as low as $29.92.

Investors shoveled funds into safe havens. Gold prices surged to a one-year high and U.S. Treasury yields plunged.

Market intelligence firm Genscape reported a build of almost 425,000 barrels in the week to Feb. 9 at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery hub for U.S. crude. On Wednesday, government data showed crude inventories in Cushing hit all-time highs just shy of 65 million barrels during the week ended Feb. 5.

Traders scrambled to buy bearish U.S. crude options, particularly for $25 puts. Technical analysts said the $25 level could be hit within days.

Investment bank Goldman Sachs said in a note to clients it expected U.S. oil prices to fluctuate between $20 and $40, with significant volatility and no trend until the second half.

Oil has fallen almost 75 percent since mid-2014 as global crude output exceeded demand by 1-2 million barrels daily. China's economy has hit the lowest growth in a generation, further limiting demand for oil.

(Additional reporting by Devika Krishna Kumar and Catherine Ngai in New York and Simon Falush in London; Editing by Marguerita Choy and David Gregorio)


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