Oil higher in Asian trade
Friday, 20 March 2009
SINGAPORE, Mar 19 (AFP): Oil prices rebounded in Asian trade today from overnight falls following a bigger-than- expected increase in US energy stocks, dealers said.
New York's main contract, light sweet crude for April delivery rose 99 cents to 49.13 dollars. Brent North Sea crude April gained 89 cents to 48.55 dollars.
Oil prices fell Wednesday after a weekly US government energy report showed the country's crude oil stocks grew by two million barrels in the week ending March 13, double the consensus forecast.
Gasoline inventories rose 3.2 million barrels instead of the decline of 1.2 million barrels expected by analysts.
Motor fuel stockpiles are in focus as the US, the world's biggest energy consumer, gears up for the start of the summer vacation season in May when demand for gasoline tends to soar.
Distilled products, including heating fuel, rose by 100,000 barrels.
Meanwhile, key oil sector players warned at an OPEC- organised conference in Vienna on Wednesday that weak oil prices are squeezing critical industry investment.
This threatens to drive up the cost of energy when the global economy recovers, they said.
"Current prices threaten the very sustainability of planned industry-wide investments," OPEC secretary general Abdalla Salem El-Badri said.
"We have all heard of project cutbacks, delays and cancellations. It is putting future crude supply at risk."
The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which pumps about 40 per cent of the world's crude, opted at its last meeting on Sunday in Vienna to leave production quotas unchanged.
New York's main contract, light sweet crude for April delivery rose 99 cents to 49.13 dollars. Brent North Sea crude April gained 89 cents to 48.55 dollars.
Oil prices fell Wednesday after a weekly US government energy report showed the country's crude oil stocks grew by two million barrels in the week ending March 13, double the consensus forecast.
Gasoline inventories rose 3.2 million barrels instead of the decline of 1.2 million barrels expected by analysts.
Motor fuel stockpiles are in focus as the US, the world's biggest energy consumer, gears up for the start of the summer vacation season in May when demand for gasoline tends to soar.
Distilled products, including heating fuel, rose by 100,000 barrels.
Meanwhile, key oil sector players warned at an OPEC- organised conference in Vienna on Wednesday that weak oil prices are squeezing critical industry investment.
This threatens to drive up the cost of energy when the global economy recovers, they said.
"Current prices threaten the very sustainability of planned industry-wide investments," OPEC secretary general Abdalla Salem El-Badri said.
"We have all heard of project cutbacks, delays and cancellations. It is putting future crude supply at risk."
The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which pumps about 40 per cent of the world's crude, opted at its last meeting on Sunday in Vienna to leave production quotas unchanged.