AGL 40.10 Increased By ▲ 0.10 (0.25%)
AIRLINK 130.50 Increased By ▲ 0.97 (0.75%)
BOP 6.80 Increased By ▲ 0.12 (1.8%)
CNERGY 4.65 Increased By ▲ 0.02 (0.43%)
DCL 9.02 Increased By ▲ 0.08 (0.89%)
DFML 43.40 Increased By ▲ 1.71 (4.1%)
DGKC 84.01 Increased By ▲ 0.24 (0.29%)
FCCL 33.03 Increased By ▲ 0.26 (0.79%)
FFBL 76.75 Increased By ▲ 1.28 (1.7%)
FFL 11.51 Increased By ▲ 0.04 (0.35%)
HUBC 110.55 No Change ▼ 0.00 (0%)
HUMNL 14.82 Increased By ▲ 0.26 (1.79%)
KEL 5.40 Increased By ▲ 0.01 (0.19%)
KOSM 8.22 Decreased By ▼ -0.18 (-2.14%)
MLCF 39.74 Decreased By ▼ -0.05 (-0.13%)
NBP 61.10 Increased By ▲ 0.81 (1.34%)
OGDC 198.40 Decreased By ▼ -1.26 (-0.63%)
PAEL 26.80 Increased By ▲ 0.15 (0.56%)
PIBTL 7.88 Increased By ▲ 0.22 (2.87%)
PPL 158.50 Increased By ▲ 0.58 (0.37%)
PRL 26.50 Decreased By ▼ -0.23 (-0.86%)
PTC 18.50 Increased By ▲ 0.04 (0.22%)
SEARL 82.40 Decreased By ▼ -0.04 (-0.05%)
TELE 8.32 Increased By ▲ 0.01 (0.12%)
TOMCL 34.65 Increased By ▲ 0.14 (0.41%)
TPLP 9.16 Increased By ▲ 0.10 (1.1%)
TREET 17.30 Decreased By ▼ -0.17 (-0.97%)
TRG 61.66 Increased By ▲ 0.34 (0.55%)
UNITY 27.55 Increased By ▲ 0.12 (0.44%)
WTL 1.41 Increased By ▲ 0.03 (2.17%)
BR100 10,478 Increased By 70.9 (0.68%)
BR30 31,811 Increased By 97.4 (0.31%)
KSE100 97,901 Increased By 572.6 (0.59%)
KSE30 30,377 Increased By 184.8 (0.61%)

Oil prices held near flat on Tuesday as the market wavered on expectations the United States and China could reach a trade agreement as early as this month while awaiting US government crude inventory data.

Investors also weighed OPEC-led efforts to tighten crude supply against the restart of Libya's biggest oilfield and the prospect of weaker demand from China.

Brent, the international benchmark, settled at $65.86 a barrel, up 19 cents. US West Texas Intermediate crude settled at $56.56 a barrel, down 3 cents.

Prices edged lower in post-settlement trade after data from the American Petroleum Institute (API), an industry group, showed larger-than-expected US crude stockpiles.

Crude inventories rose by 7.3 million barrels in the week ending March 1 to 451.5 million, compared with analysts' expectations for an increase of 1.2 million barrels, API said. Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub rose by 1.1 million barrels.

The US government's official figures are due on Wednesday.

"Oil is still waiting for a deal to come back to the table with China," said Phillip Streible, senior commodities strategist at RJO Futures.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said President Donald Trump would reject any trade deal that is not perfect, but added the White House would keep working on an agreement.

Supply curbs by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies helped support crude. On Monday, Russia said it would speed up output cuts this month, and OPEC sources this week also said the group would likely extend its output cut pact that has driven oil prices about 20 percent higher this year.

"By them kicking the can down the road, and not making a decision on production until June, the die has basically been cast for the start of US summer driving season. You'd think that'd be pretty bullish," said Phil Flynn, analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.

The restart of Libya's El Sharara oilfield could offset some of the cuts, however. The field, with a capacity of 315,000 barrels a day, had been closed since December.

Concern about an economic slowdown in China weighed on prices.

China's government said it was targeting economic growth of 6.0 to 6.5 percent in 2019, lower than the 6.6 percent growth reported last year and raising the prospect of slowing fuel demand.

"China's downward revision in their expected GDP gains for this year conjured up further ideas of smaller-than-expected oil demand increases in the coming months," Jim Ritterbusch, president of Ritterbusch and Associates, said in a note.

Copyright Reuters, 2019
 

 

 

 

Comments

Comments are closed.