SINGAPORE- Oil prices on Thursday extended declines from the previous session after a larger-than-expected build in US crude stockpiles stoked worries about slow demand, while signs that US interest rates could remain elevated added to pressure.
Brent crude futures fell 14 cents, or 0.2 percent , to $83.54 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were down 4 cents, or 0.1 percent , to $78.50 a barrel.
US crude oil stockpiles rose while gasoline and distillate inventories fell last week as refiners ran at below seasonal lows due to planned and unplanned outages, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.
Crude inventories rose for the fifth consecutive week, increasing by 4.2 million barrels to 447.2 million barrels in the week ended Feb. 23, the EIA said, compared with analysts’ expectations in a Reuters poll for a 2.7 million-barrel rise.
“Large stockpiles heightened investors’ worries over a slow economy and reduced oil demand in the US ,” said Satoru Yoshida, a commodity analyst with Rakuten Securities.
“The anticipation of delayed US rate cuts also weighed on the market sentiment as it could undermine oil demand,” he said.
High borrowing costs typically reduce economic growth and oil demand.
Traders have already dialed back expectations for US interest rate cuts after a slew of strong data, including hot consumer price index and producer price index readings. They expect an easing cycle to kick off in June, compared with the start of 2024 when bets were on March.
