Matt Nager/Bloomberg News
Oil slipped after an industry report was said to show a smaller-than-anticipated U.S. crude inventory decline.
Supplies fell 840,000 barrels last week according to an American Petroleum Institute report April 18, people familiar with the data said. That contrasted with analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News who said supplies probably slipped by 1.4 million barrels before Energy Information Administration data April 19. Gasoline stockpiles rose 1.37 million barrels, API was said to report.
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Oil had rallied above $53 a barrel last week after some producers voiced support for prolonging a six-month supply-cut deal by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies. OPEC ministers are scheduled to gather in Vienna on May 25 to discuss whether to extend the curbs.
“We are still in a very well-supplied crude market in the U.S.,” Thomas Finlon, director of Energy Analytics Group in Wellington, Fla., said by telephone. “The gasoline build was a bit of a surprise but makes sense given that this is the time of year refinery runs increase.”
West Texas Intermediate for May delivery fell 24 cents to $52.41 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It’s the lowest close since April 7. Total volume traded was about 14 % below the 100-day average. WTI was down 32 cents at $52.33 a barrel at 4:54 p.m. after the release of the API report.
Brent for June settlement fell 47 cents, or 0.8 %, to $54.89 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange, and closed at a $2.04 premium to WTI for the same month.
| By Mark Shenk Bloomberg News |
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