Oil hovers near $71 as US crude supplies climb
SINGAPORE — Oil prices hung near $71 a barrel Wednesday in Asia as an unexpected rise in U.S. crude supplies heightened investor concerns about weak consumer demand.
Benchmark crude for October delivery was down 13 cents to $70.80 a barrel by late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Tuesday, the contract rose $2.07 to settle at $70.93.
Crude prices have hugged the $70 level for months as gasoline demand remains sluggish amid signs the global economy is recovering.
On Tuesday, a SpendingPulse report by MasterCard showed the four-week average for gasoline consumption in the U.S. fell 3.2 percent for the week ended Friday, the ninth straight weekly decline.
U.S. oil inventories rose last week, more evidence demand remains tepid, the American Petroleum Institute said late Tuesday. Crude stocks increased 631,000 barrels while analysts had expected a drop of 3.0 million barrels, according to a survey by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos.
Supplies of gasoline grew 1.3 million barrels while distillates jumped 5.2 million barrels, the API said.
A weakening U.S. dollar has helped support oil prices. The euro rose Wednesday in Asian trading to $1.4702 from $1.4656 the previous day while the dollar fell to 90.25 yen.
In other Nymex trading, gasoline for October delivery fell 0.57 cent to $1.78 a gallon, and heating oil was steady at $1.78 a gallon. Natural gas jumped 12.2 cents to $3.44 per 1,000 cubic feet.
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