Oil trades close to multi-month lows

Oil traded near multi-month lows on Thursday with Brent under $50 a barrel as excess supplies and the prospect of further dollar strength weighed on prices. Gasoline stocks in the United States rose more than expected last week, overriding the bullish picture from a larger-than-expected drop in crude stockpiles and pushing prices down to their lowest levels in months. September Brent crude LCOc1 fell 21 cents to $49.38 a barrel by 0633 GMT after dropping to $49.02 on Wednesday, the lowest since Jan. 30. US crude CLc1 dropped to an intraday low of $44.82 a barrel, the weakest since March 20, and was last at $44.85, down 30 cents, according to Reuters.

-SRS