Oil pares gains ahead of US inventory report
23 Nov 2006
Mumbai:
Crude oil prices dropped below $60 a barrel on Wednesday,
ahead of the weekly US oil inventory report, a day after
fears of supply disruptions pushed prices above $60
a barrel.
Market is expecting a drop in US supply of gasoline
and distillates, which include heating oil and diesel
fuel, for a seventh straight week.
US light crude for January delivery fell 13 cents to
$60.04 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York
Mercantile Exchange while January Brent futures on London's
ICE exchange was down 19 cents at $60.20 a barrel.
On Nymex, heating oil futures dropped 1.21 cent to $1.7210
a gallon, unleaded gasoline was down 1.81 cents at $1.6146
and natural gas futures fell 14.3 cents to $7.845 per
1,000 cubic feet.
Oil rose above $60 on Tuesday following news that the
Trans-Alaska pipeline was flowing at just 25 per cent
of its normal 800,000 barrel-a-day capacity, as strong
winds disrupted tanker loading.
Also, the 562,500 barrels-a-day Exxon Mobil Corporation's
refinery in Baytown, Texas and Citgo's 156,000 barrel-a-day
refinery in Corpus Christie, Texas were due for shut-down,
prompting a price rise.
Oil prices have fallen by about 23 per cent since it
hit an all-time high
above $78 a barrel in mid-July. Prices have settled
below $62 a barrel since October, despite a call by
the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries in
mid-October that it would reduce output by 1.2 million
barrels a day.
