Oil steadies above $134 after slump
|
|
|
By Santosh MenonLONDON (Reuters) - Oil held above $134 a barrel on Thursday, after an initial fall that seemed like a continuation of its recent tumble on mounting evidence of fading demand in the United States and easing tensions between the U.S. and Iran.A fresh attack on an oil pipeline in Nigeria, the world's eighth-biggest oil exporter, shut 20,000 barrels per day of crude oil production, underscoring the risk to supplies.U.S. crude futures were 10 cents lower at $134.50 a barrel at 9 a.m. EDT, off lows of $133.02.It slid $4.14 on Wednesday, taking the drop from last Friday's all-time peak of $147.27 to around $13.London Brent crude for September also shed 11 cents to $135.70 a barrel."Poor consumer demand and recovering OPEC supply may finally be showing up in the numbers, setting the stage for an extended price retreat," said Antoine Halff, deputy head of research, Americas, at Newedge USA in New York.Dealers said Wednesday's losses were triggered by a 3-million barrel increase in U.S. crude stocks, according to data from the Energy Information Administration.Gasoline and distillate inventories also rose."Besides the increase in crude, gasoline, and distillate stocks, it's interesting to note that demand in the United States remains relatively weak as well," said David Moore, analyst at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.The widely-watched government report showed U.S. oil products demand running at 2.0 percent below year-ago levels, another sign that soaring prices are cutting into consumer demand for fuel.Adding to pressure on oil prices, a senior U.S. official said on Tuesday the United States planned to send an envoy for talks this weekend between Iran and major powers over Tehran's nuclear program."It doesn't help support prices that Washington, for all its belligerent rhetoric towards Iran, is in fact giving signs that it is turning away from the military option and increasingly resorting to a policy of engagement with Tehran," Newedge's Halff said.Washington had said it would not be involved in any pre-negotiations with Iran unless it gave up nuclear enrichment. The standoff between the Islamic Republic and the West has helped boost oil prices.(Additional reporting by Luke Pachymuthu in Singapore and Gene Ramos in New York; editing by James Jukwey) (c) Reuters 2008. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by caching, framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Related News
Five more US bank failures bring total for 2009 to 120
New York - Bank failures in the United States have risen to 120 this year as five more regional institutions were added to the list, the US agency that guarantees the safety of bank deposits said. United Commercial Bank in San Francisco with assets o...
US stocks climb slightly despite double-digit jobless rate
New York - US stocks posted mild gains Friday to end the week as investors shrugged off government figures that put the unemployment rate above 10 per cent. The Labour Department said the jobless rate hit 10.2 per cent in the month of October, the hi...
US joblessness hits 10.2 per cent, highest in 26 years - Summary
Washington - The US unemployment rate surged to 10.2 per cent in October, the highest in 26 years as another 190,000 people lost their jobs, the Labour Department reported Friday. The figure comes after a 9.8-per-cent jobless rate in September and wa...
US joblessness jumps to 10.2 per cent, highest since 1983 - Update
Washington - The US unemployment rate surged to 10.2 per cent in October, the highest in 26 years, as another 190,000 people lost their jobs during the month, the US reported Friday. The figure reported by US Labour Department came after the 9.8 per ...
US jobless rate jumps to 10.2 per cent
Washington - The US unemployment rate surged to 10.2 per cent in October as another 190,000 people lost their jobs, according to US Labour Department figures released Friday. The jobless rate stood at 9.8 per cent in September. Unemployment had been ...
Bulls stop James, edge Cavs - Summary
Los Angeles - The King couldn't deliver in the clutch. Luol Deng and Joakim Noah combined to deny LeBron James a potential game-winning drive in the final seconds as and the visiting Chicago Bulls snapped the Cleveland Cavaliers' three-game winning...
Mortgage lender Fannie Mae posts nearly 19-billion-dollar loss
Washington - US mortgage lender Fannie Mae said Thursday that it would seek 15 billion dollars in federal aid, after posting its ninth consecutive quarterly loss. Fannie Mae reported a net loss of 18.9 billion dollars in the third quarter of 2009, co...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
