Oil futures traded modestly higher during Wednesday’s Asian session despite data from the American Petroleum Institute that showed an increase in inventories in the U.S. last week. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for November delivery rose 0.15% to USD103.65 per barrel in Asian trading Wednesday. The November contract settled higher by 0.45% at USD103.49 per barrel on Tuesday. The ongoing government shutdown in the U.S. has stretched into a second week, leaving oil traders without many of the key data points they count on to drive trading strategies. Speaking of data, the American Petroleum Institute said U.S. oil inventories rose 2.8 million barrel for the week ending October 4. Analysts expected an increase of 2.2 million barrels. Gasoline stockpiles dropped 2.8 million barrels while distillate supplies fell by 1.1 million barrels. Analysts expected gasoline supplies to increase 1.3 million barrels and expected a drop of 1.9 million barrels in distillates. The U.S. Energy Information Administration is expected to release its weekly supply report despite the shutdown later today. Oil may also be getting a lift on media reports that President Barrack Obama will nominate Federal Reserve Vice Chairwoman Janet Yellen to lead the U.S. central bank when Chairman Ben Bernanke retires early next year. Yellen is seen as dovish and likely to continue the loose monetary policy set forth by Bernanke, which could further bolster commodities prices. On Tuesday, reports said recent discoveries in the Barents Sea around Norway could portend additional finds in an area where production has been declining. Elsewhere, Brent crude for November delivery fell 0.15% to USD109.90 per barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange.
Posted on: Wed, 09 Oct 2013 04:16:02 +0000
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