Crude oil futures traded lower on Thursday morning as official data showed higher inventories in the US.
At 9.52 am on Thursday, May Brent oil futures were at $82.11, down by 0.05 per cent, and April crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $78.50, down by 0.05 per cent.
March crude oil futures were trading at ₹6,510 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) during initial trading against the previous close of ₹6,520, down by 0.15 per cent, and April futures were trading at ₹6,487 against the previous close of ₹6,495, down by 0.12 per cent.
2% below 5-year average
The petroleum status report released by the US EIA (Energy Information Administration) for the week ending February 23 showed that US commercial crude oil inventories increased by 4.2 million barrels from the previous week. The market was expecting the inventories to rise by 2.74 million barrels during the period.
Total motor gasoline inventories in the US decreased by 2.8 million barrels from last week and were about 2 per cent below the five-year average for this time of year.
Total products supplied in the US over the last four-week period averaged 19.5 million barrels a day, down by 3.2 per cent from the same period last year. Over the past four weeks, motor gasoline product supplied averaged 8.4 million barrels a day, down by 3.1 per cent from the same period last year.
The market is now awaiting the release of the PCE price index data for January to know where US inflation stands, as many US Federal Reserve officials have been stressing the need to cut inflation to the annual target of 2 per cent before initiating interest rate cuts. High-interest rates impact the economy, which, in turn, affects the demand for commodities such as crude oil.
Jeera gains, kapas slips
March natural gas futures were trading at ₹155.20 on MCX against the previous close of ₹156.70, down by 0.96 per cent.
On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), March jeera contracts were trading at ₹24,880 against the previous close of ₹24,365, up by 2.11 per cent.
April kapas futures were trading at ₹1,630 on NCDEX against the previous close of ₹1,643, down by 0.82 per cent.
