Crude Oil Prices Settle Lower on Renewed Oversupply Concerns

Investing.com – Crude oil prices settled lower on Thursday as data showing a larger than expected build-up of product inventories continued to weigh on sentiment.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange for November delivery fell 1.4% to settle at $51.29 a barrel, while on London’s Intercontinental Exchange, lost 1.58% to trade at $57.23 a barrel.

Crude oil prices fell as signs that Opec would extend the global supply-cut agreement deal failed to offset ongoing investor concerns over data showing a sharp rise in gasoline and diesel supplies.

A weekly report from the Energy Information Administration released Wednesday showed U.S. gasoline stockpiles rose for a fourth straight week while supplies of distillates – the class of fuels that includes diesel and – increased for the first time since August.

“We’re following through on the bearish influence that we had from product builds in the U.S.,” said Harry Tchilinguirian, head of commodity markets strategy at BNP Paribas SA in London.

The uptick in supplies of refinery products such as gasoline comes amid a traditional slowdown in refinery activity as refiners undergo seasonal maintenance.

Sentiment on oil prices, however, improved after Opec leaders signalled a possible extension to the output-agreement deal, set to expire in March.

OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s suggestion this month that the deal could be extended to the end of 2018 were being taken “seriously”.

In May, Opec and non-Opec members agreed to extend production cuts for a period of nine months until March, but stuck to production cuts of 1.8 million bpd agreed in November last year.

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