SINGAPORE, Oct 26 (Reuters) – Oil prices were little changed on Thursday as markets weighed a range of factors, focusing on tensions in the Middle East while digesting a rise in U.S. crude inventories.
At 0100 GMT, Brent crude oil futures were down 3 cents at $90.10 a barrel, and US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were down 3 cents at $85.36 a barrel.
Benchmark oil contracts settled nearly 2% higher on Wednesday, boosted by persistent concerns over Middle East conflict.
However, prices lacked clear direction on Thursday as investors factored in drawdowns and a rise in U.S. crude inventories indicating weak demand.
U.S. crude oil inventories (USOILC=ECI) rose 1.4 million barrels in the past week to 421.1 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration said, exceeding the 240,000 barrel increase expected by analysts polled by Reuters.
“Markets remain volatile due to the ebb and flow of unrest in the Middle East, but underlying fundamentals remain seasonally weak with demand for U.S. products surprisingly weak,” Citi analysts said Thursday. “It’s weaker than expected.”
According to EIA data, U.S. refinery crude oil utilization decreased by 207,000 barrels per day, and refinery utilization also fell by 0.5 percentage point to 85.6% of total capacity.
Investors will continue to monitor developments in the Middle East, fearing that an escalation could disrupt oil markets and disrupt supply.
According to reports, Israel has agreed to postpone its expected invasion of Gaza for the time being so that the United States can rush missile defenses to the area and protect American troops there.
Meanwhile, macroeconomic concerns continued to weigh on the oil demand outlook, as this month’s euro zone business activity data unexpectedly fell.
Report by Jeslyn Lerh.Editing: Jerry Doyle
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