Oil hardly changed amid concern about global growth

Singapore — Oil prices were steady on Wednesday, after falling the past two days, as a surge in US stockpiles reinforced concerns about lacklustre global economic growth amid the trade war between the US and China, the world’s two biggest oil consumers.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 11c, or 0.2%, to $55.32 a barrel by 2.52am GMT, after falling 4.3% during the previous two sessions.

Brent crude futures were at $60.93 a barrel, up 2c, or 0.03%. Brent dropped 3.8% during the prior two sessions.

US crude inventories rose 6-million barrels in the week to November 15 to 445.9-million, compared with analysts’ expectations for an increase of 1.5-million barrels, data from industry group the American Petroleum Institute (API) showed late on Tuesday.

The increase in inventories in the US added to concerns about a crude oversupply raised after Reuters reported that Russia, the world’s second-biggest producer, was unlikely to back deepening output cuts when the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) meet on December 5-6 in Vienna.

Russia and other oil producers, a producer group known as Opec+, have agreed with Opec to cut 1.2-million barrels per day of output until March to bolster prices.

“Oil is also feeling heavy after the Russians signalled they are unlikely to agree on deepening oil production cuts at the December Opec+ meeting,” said Edward Moya, an analyst at brokerage Oanda, in a note.

“The API data also showed US inventories posted a rather robust increase last week, which if confirmed, we could see oil prices continue to slide,” he said.

Official US government inventory data from the Energy Information Administration is due at 3.30pm GMT on Wednesday.

US crude demand has slowed amid its protracted trade war with China. Hopes for an end to the dispute in the signing of a phase one agreement between the sides has dimmed amid disagreements over the removal of tariffs each side has enacted.

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that the US would raise tariffs on Chinese imports if no deal is reached with Beijing to end the war.

Knock-on effects from the trade war have been felt in other industrialised economies.

Japanese exports tumbled at their quickest pace in three years in October, threatening to tip the trade-reliant economy into recession because of weakening demand from the US and China.

Crude imports to Japan, the world’s fourth-largest oil buyer, fell 1.3% in October compared to the same month a year ago.

Reuters