Forexpros – Crude oil futures rose on Thursday, after industry data showed a surprise drop in U.S. crude supplies, while investors continued to focus on developments surrounding the euro zone’s ongoing sovereign debt crisis and a potential disruption Iranian oil exports.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in March traded at USD101.70 a barrel during European morning trade, climbing 0.93%.
It earlier rose by as much as 1.05% to trade at a daily high of USD101.81 a barrel.
After markets closed Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, said that U.S. crude inventories fell by 4.81 million barrels last week, while total gasoline supplies rose by 4.31 million barrels.
Oil traders were looking forward to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on U.S. stockpiles of crude and refined products to gauge the strength of oil demand in the world’s largest oil consumer. The report was being released a day later than usual because of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
The report was expected to show that U.S. crude oil stockpiles rise by 2.9 million barrels last week, while gasoline supplies were forecast to increase by 2.35 million barrels.
Elsewhere, Greece’s government was due to resume talks with its bond holders later in the day to discuss a voluntary write-down on Greece’s sovereign debt.
Greece needs to secure an agreement on restructuring its debt in order to secure new bailout funds and avert a default when a EUR14.4 billion bond redemption comes due on March 20.
Markets were also eyeing government debt sales from France and Spain later in the day, in what was being viewed as a critical test of investor’s appetite for European sovereign debt.
Meanwhile, oil traders continued to monitor tension between Iran and the West after the country’s foreign minister warned its neighbors against delivering additional oil to world markets to compensate for Iranian exports if they are hit by sanctions.
European Union foreign ministers are scheduled to meet January 23 to decide on proposed sanctions on Iran’s oil imports. Reports surfaced Wednesday that the EU embargo on Iranian oil was expected take effect on July 1.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for March delivery rose 0.69% to trade at USD111.42 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD9.72 a barrel.
Forexpros
