Investing.com – Crude oil futures held on to losses on Thursday, after a government report showed U.S. crude supplies fell significantly more-than-expected last week, while gasoline inventories rose unexpectedly.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in October traded at USD88.78 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, tumbling 1.62%.
It earlier fell as much as 1.8% to trade at a daily low of USD88.53 a barrel.
The contract traded at USD89.18 prior to the release of the Energy Information Administration data.
The U.S. EIA said in its weekly report that U.S. crude oil inventories declined by 6.7 million barrels in the week ended September 9, more than doubling expectations for a 3.0 million barrel decline, as Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee disrupted oil production in the Gulf of Mexico.
U.S. crude supplies fell by 4.0 million barrels in the preceding week.
Total U.S. crude oil inventories stood at 346.4 million barrels as of last week, remaining above the upper limit of the average range for this time of year.
Total motor gasoline inventories increased by 1.9 million barrels, confounding expectations for a 0.5 million barrel drop, painting a mixed picture of U.S. energy demand.
Meanwhile, concerns over the U.S. economic outlook also weighed, following the release of lackluster data on U.S. retail sales and wholesales prices.
The U.S. Census Bureau said earlier that retail sales in the U.S. unexpectedly stagnated in August, confounding expectations for a 0.2% gain, as high unemployment and the debt ceiling debate prompted investors to spend less.
A separate report showed that producer price inflation in the U.S. was flat in August, broadly in line with expectations, as lower oil prices offset rising food costs.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for November delivery shed 0.3% to trade at USD109.16 a barrel, up USD20.13 a barrel on its U.S. counterpart.
Deutsche Bank said in a report late Tuesday that Brent prices were likely to come under pressure in the short-term, citing global economic uncertainty and the prospects for a pickup in Libyan oil exports.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in October traded at USD88.78 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, tumbling 1.62%.
It earlier fell as much as 1.8% to trade at a daily low of USD88.53 a barrel.
The contract traded at USD89.18 prior to the release of the Energy Information Administration data.
The U.S. EIA said in its weekly report that U.S. crude oil inventories declined by 6.7 million barrels in the week ended September 9, more than doubling expectations for a 3.0 million barrel decline, as Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee disrupted oil production in the Gulf of Mexico.
U.S. crude supplies fell by 4.0 million barrels in the preceding week.
Total U.S. crude oil inventories stood at 346.4 million barrels as of last week, remaining above the upper limit of the average range for this time of year.
Total motor gasoline inventories increased by 1.9 million barrels, confounding expectations for a 0.5 million barrel drop, painting a mixed picture of U.S. energy demand.
Meanwhile, concerns over the U.S. economic outlook also weighed, following the release of lackluster data on U.S. retail sales and wholesales prices.
The U.S. Census Bureau said earlier that retail sales in the U.S. unexpectedly stagnated in August, confounding expectations for a 0.2% gain, as high unemployment and the debt ceiling debate prompted investors to spend less.
A separate report showed that producer price inflation in the U.S. was flat in August, broadly in line with expectations, as lower oil prices offset rising food costs.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for November delivery shed 0.3% to trade at USD109.16 a barrel, up USD20.13 a barrel on its U.S. counterpart.
Deutsche Bank said in a report late Tuesday that Brent prices were likely to come under pressure in the short-term, citing global economic uncertainty and the prospects for a pickup in Libyan oil exports.