Oil prices fell, Thursday, in limited trading ahead of an official holiday; Traders are studying the impact of a larger-than-expected rise in US oil inventories in the face of global supply shortages.
Brent crude futures fell $1.14, or 1.1 percent, to $107.64 a barrel, while the price of West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell $1.32, or 1.3 percent, to $102.93 a barrel. The two benchmarks ignored the rise in US inventories, on Wednesday, to close at a rise of regarding four dollars.
The International Energy Agency warned, on Wednesday, that from next May onwards, nearly three million barrels per day of Russian oil supplies might be cut off due to sanctions and a voluntary embargo.
Vandana Hari, founder of oil market analyst Vanda Insights, said the possibility of an EU embargo on Russian oil was virtually non-existent, but no one might or wanted to say that outright. “But just waving that would be enough to maintain the risk premium,” he added.
Despite signs that global supply disruptions may continue, US oil stocks rose by more than nine million barrels last week, the US Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday, in part due to a drawdown in strategic stocks. Analysts polled by Archyde.com had expected stocks to rise by 863,000 barrels. (Archyde.com)
