09/12/2009
SINGAPORE, Dec 9, 2009
Oil moved up above $73 a barrel on Wednesday, after falling more than $1 the previous day, supported by industry data showing an unexpectedly large drop in U.S. crude stocks, but gains were curbed by the steady dollar.
Crude inventories in the world's largest oil consumer fell 5.8 million barrels last week, bucking expectations for an increase, as refiners boosted fuel production, the American Petroleum Institute (API) said.
U.S. crude for January delivery <CLc1> rose 50 cents to $73.12 a barrel by 0258 GMT, after falling by $1.31 on Tuesday. NYMEX crude hit its lowest level since late November at $72.43 in the previous session, and has lost 7.3 percent since prices last rose on Dec. 1.
London Brent crude <LCOc1> edged up 26 cents to $75.45.
The last five days' losses are the biggest since prices fell 7.9 percent on Sept. 23 and Sept. 24, partly driven down by the recovery in the dollar.
"The draw in crude stocks is huge, even though oil imports have been rising," said Tetsu Emori, a fund manager at Tokyo-based Astmax Co Ltd.
"Refining rates were up 1.3 percentage points and we could be seeing the first signs of a recovery in fuel demand in the United States," he said, adding that some support may come from the products side as refinery margins may be improving as crude prices weaken.
API data also showed gasoline inventories fell 753,000 barrels, while distillates, which include heating oil and diesel, rose 1 million barrels, reports Reuters.
