Oil futures swing to losses as Pro-Moscow rebels seek autonomy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oil futures were mixed early Tuesday, weighed by the risk of further European sanctions against Russia after separatists in eastern Ukraine appealed to join the Russian Federation over the weekend. Pressure was evident in the oil markets this morning, with prices moving sideways amid ongoing standoff in eastern Ukraine, where Pro-Moscow rebels called for their region to become part of Russia, the day after staging referendums seeking autonomy, which were denounced by authorities in Kiev, the United States and the European Union. Moscow welcomed the weekend votes on self-rule. The EU raised pressure on Moscow by slamming a top aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the commander of Russian paratroops with new sanctions, besides a couple of big Crimean energy companies. The tension in eastern Ukraine continue to offer support to crude benchmarks, but the fact that Moscow is raising the punishment bar over Moscow is definitely weighing on the oil market. As of 03:32 a.m. ET: - West Texas Intermediate for May delivery fell 0.07% to $100.52 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange - Brent for May delivery fell 0.10% to $108.30 a barrel on the ICE exchange in London - NYMEX Natural Gas fell 0.14% to $4.428 per British thermal units Experts are calling for another drop in US crude oil stockpiles ahead of the weekly inventory reports from the American Petroleum Institute (API) due today, and the Energy Information Administration (EIA) due tomorrow. The consensus median forecast for the week ending May 19 came as follows: - EIA total change in crude stockpiles -0.17 million barrels vs. -1.78 million barrels Moving to Libya, where we might see a sharp recovery in oil production, after government officials said its western oilfields and pipelines were ready to reopen, having been blocked by protest since March. #egyptyard
Posted on: Tue, 13 May 2014 08:47:59 +0000
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