On Thursday crude oil futures declined after posting its
biggest one-day rally in two months on Wednesday, as data showed that oil supplies
in the U.S. rose less than expected last week.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude oil for May delivery dipped 38 cents, or 0.67%, to trade at $56.02 a barrel during European morning hours. A day earlier, Nymex oil surged $3.10, or 5.82%, to close at $56.39 after hitting an intraday peak of $56.69, the most since December 23.
On the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for June delivery slumped 76 cents, or 1.2%, to trade at $62.56 a barrel. On Wednesday, London-traded Brent prices surged $3.51, or 5.87%, to settle at $63.32, the highest level since December 18.
The spread between the Brent and the WTI crude contracts stood at $6.54 a barrel, compared to $6.93 by close of trade on Wednesday.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that U.S. crude oil inventories rose by 1.3 million barrels in the week ended April 10 to a total of 483.7 million, below expectations for an increase of 4.1 million barrels.
U.S. oil futures have been well-supported in recent sessions due to mounting expectations that U.S. shale oil production has peaked and may start falling in the coming months amid an ongoing collapse in rigs drilling for oil.
In the currencies, the greenback recovered some strength lost after a
weaker-than-expected U.S. industrial production report on Wednesday.
Later in the day, investors will be awaiting U.S. housing data for
further indications on the strength of the economy and the timing of an
interest rate hike.
The U.S. is also expected to release weekly data on initial jobless claims as well as a report on manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region.
