|
Brent crude futures rose 2 cents, or 0.7%, to $74.42 a barrel.
West Texas Intermediate U.S. crude was down 5 cents to $70.81 at
0921 GMT.
The International Energy Agency on Tuesday predicted demand
would outpace supply by 2 million barrels per day (bpd) in the
second half of the year, with China making up 60% of oil demand
growth in 2023.
"Crude prices remain heavy as energy traders just can't shake
off global demand concerns. It doesn't matter how upbeat
everyone is for China's second half of the year, the current
situation is too disappointing," said Edward Moya, an analyst at
OANDA.
U.S. crude stockpiles rose by about 3.6 million barrels in the
week ended May 12, according to market sources citing American
Petroleum Institute figures. Seven analysts polled by Reuters,
had expected a 900,000 barrel drawdown.
U.S. government data on crude and product stockpiles is due at
1430 GMT. [EIA/S]
The crude inventory build added to concerns about U.S. growth
after data showed retail sales rose 0.4% in April, short of
estimates for an increase of 0.8%.
Talks on raising the U.S. debt ceiling continue to weigh on the
market. The U.S. Treasury Department has estimated that the
United States will go into a crippling default as early as June
1 if Congress does not lift the ceiling.
In China, April industrial output and retail sales growth
undershot forecasts, suggesting the economy lost momentum at the
beginning of the second quarter.
"Markets were in a wait-and-watch mode over the outcome of
crucial negotiations to raise the U.S. government's debt
ceiling," said Vandana Hari, founder of oil market analysis
provider Vanda Insights.
"A bunch of Chinese macro-economic data for April released on
Tuesday confirmed the narrative of a patchy and slow recovery in
the country and continue to weigh on oil market sentiment."
(Additional reporting by Katya Golubkova; editing by Mark Potter
and Jason Neely)
[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
