Oil Trades Near One-Week Low on US Stockpiles, European Crisis
Dec. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Oil traded near the lowest level in a week in New York after a report showed U.S. crude stockpiles surged, indicating fuel demand may be weakening as Europe’s debt crisis threatens to slow the global economy.
Futures were little changed after sliding 2 percent yesterday, the first decline in seven days, as record European Central Bank lending signaled the growing risk of the region’s crisis. Crude inventories rose 9.57 million barrels last week, according to the industry-funded American Petroleum Institute. A U.S. Department of Energy report today was forecast to show supplies fell 2.5 million in a Bloomberg News survey.
“In order for bears in the oil market to build on yesterday’s weakness we are going to need to see the DOE corroborate the API report,” said Stephen Schork, president of Schork Group Inc. in Villanova, Pennsylvania, in a report. “Yesterday oil markets traded lower in sympathy with post-ECB reactions in the currency and equity markets.”