Oil edges off three-month
lows, eyes on U.S. inventory
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[March 14, 2017]
By Edmund Blair
LONDON
(Reuters) - Oil prices recovered modestly from three-month lows on
Tuesday, with concerns persisting about rising U.S. inventories and few
clear signs that OPEC will extend supply curbs beyond June.
The immediate focus for investors is Tuesday's data from the American
Petroleum Institute (API) about U.S. crude and product stockpiles after
a bigger-than-expected climb in last week's report. Analysts see a
further, albeit smaller, rise this time.
"Right now, the direction of travel is more important than the absolute
level," said Harry Tchilinguirian, global head of commodity strategy at
BNP Paribas, citing concerns that OPEC-led cuts lasting from January to
June had not halted the build.
By 1052 GMT, Brent futures <LCOc1> had risen 35 cents to $51.70 a
barrel, after sliding on Monday to $50.85, their lowest level since Dec.
1.
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U.S. crude <CLc1> rose 27 cents to $48.67 a barrel, after dipping in the
previous session to $47.90, its lowest since November.
"This week is crucial to give us an idea of where prices will be for the
rest of the year - all eyes will be on API data later, and a sniff of
another big crude build and down we go towards $45," said Matt Stanley,
commodities broker at Freight Investor Services.
Investors will also be watching OPEC's monthly report to be released on
Tuesday, followed by a report from the International Energy Agency on
global supply and demand on Wednesday.
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![](../images/031417pics/busine35.jpg)
An oil pump jack pumps oil in a field near Calgary, Alberta, Canada
on July 21, 2014. REUTERS/Todd Korol/File Photo
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Crude
prices have erased most of the gains made since the Organization of the
Petroleum Exporting Countries announced supply curbs on Nov. 30, followed in
December by an announcement that a number of non-OPEC producers would join the
cuts.
OPEC has said the supply cuts aim to stabilize prices and draw down global
inventories. Investors are now looking for indications that OPEC will extend its
reductions beyond June.
Saudi ally Kuwait said on Monday it would support an extension of the global
deal.
"It will speed up rebalancing of the market and will help bring prices to
acceptable levels for oil-producing nations and the industry in general," the
Gulf state's oil minister, Essam al-Marzouq, told the state news agency.
But Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter and which has cut even more
production than it had pledged in the OPEC deal, has yet to indicate clearly
whether it is ready to extend.
(Additional reporting by Aaron Sheldrick in Tokyo; Editing by Dale Hudson)
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