2020-09-03 12:50:00
OIL PRICE: BELOW $44
REUTERS - SEPTEMBER 3, 2020 - Oil prices extended losses on Thursday, falling to their lowest point since early August, as worries about weaker U.S. gasoline demand and a sluggish economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic dented sentiment.
Brent crude LCOc1 fell 79 cents, or 1.8%, to $43.64 a barrel by 0845 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 futures were down 67 cents, or 1.6%, at $40.84 a barrel.
Both benchmarks fell more than 2% on Wednesday.
U.S. gasoline demand last week fell to 8.78 million barrels per day (bpd) from 9.16 million bpd a week earlier, Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed on Wednesday, with consumption of other oil products also falling.
“It is the latest data set that possibly caught the eye of those who ran long positions, and not even another record close in the U.S. stock market was able to change the direction of the herd,” Tamas Varga of oil brokerage PVM said.
Other data, such as U.S. private employers hiring fewer workers than expected for a second straight month in August, also fed fears that economic recovery was lagging.
Oil markets, however, drew some support from Iraq's denial it was seeking exemption from OPEC+ oil cuts during the first quarter of next year.
OPEC's second largest producer also said it may seek to extend by two months until the end of November the period for making additional compensation cuts under the OPEC+ deal.
Analysts warn that the upcoming refinery maintenance and the end of the summer driving season would also limit crude demand.
WTI crude has come under pressure "after U.S. refiners earmarked a long list of maintenance closures over the coming months that will no doubt impact demand for crude oil", ANZ Research said in a note on Thursday.
Due to shutdowns ahead of Hurricane Laura, U.S. refinery utilization rates fell by 5.3 percentage points to 76.7% of total capacity, the EIA said.
"These factors suggest a seasonal drop-off in refinery runs and higher oil inventory levels as we advance through September," AxiCorp market strategist Stephen Innes said.
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Earlier:
2020, September, 2, 13:15:00
OIL PRICE: BELOW $46 YET
Brent was up 37 cents, or 0.8%, to $45.95 a barrel, WTI rose 34 cents, or 0.8%, to $43.10.
2020, September, 1, 15:05:00
OIL PRICE: BELOW $46 AGAIN
Brent climbed 61 cents to $45.89 a barrel, WTI rose 53 cents, hitting $43.14 a barrel.
2020, August, 31, 12:30:00
OIL PRICE: NOT BELOW $46
Brent advanced to $46.50 a barrel, WTI was at $43.48 a barrel, up 51 cents, or 1.2%.
2020, August, 28, 15:45:20
OIL PRICE: NOT BELOW $45 YET
Brent was down 7 cents to $44.99 a barrel, WTI were down 3 cents to $43.01 a barrel.
2020, August, 27, 13:55:00
OIL PRICE: NOT BELOW $45 AGAIN
Brent rose 6 cents, or, 0.1% to $45.70 a barrel, WTI fell 8 cents or 0.2% to $43.31 a barrel.
2020, August, 27, 13:50:00
U.S. OIL INVENTORIES DOWN BY 4.7 MB TO 507.8 MB
U.S. commercial crude oil inventories decreased by 4.7 million barrels to 507.8 million barrels,
2020, August, 26, 13:15:00
OIL PRICE: NEAR $46
Brent rose 2 cents to $45.88 a barrel , WTI fell 3 cents to $43.32.
2020, August, 26, 12:45:00
U.S. OIL MARKET UPDOWN
“Although the market remains uncertain, we saw encouraging signs in July with gradual rebalancing of oil supply and demand,” API Chief Economist Dean Forman said. “Increases in U.S. refinery throughput and capacity utilization in July – coupled with inventories receding from record highs – has reinforced expectations for the continued demand recovery.”
