RTTN: Crude Edges Up Ahead Of Official Inventories Data
(RTTNews) - The price of crude oil edged up Wednesday morning as traders await official weekly U.S. crude oil inventories data from the EIA.
Light Sweet Crude Oil (WTI) futures for November delivery, which expires today, were up $0.86 to $80.35 a barrel. Yesterday, oil plummeted over 4% to record its steepest fall since early February, after China announced rate hikes to curb inflation.
Tuesday after the market close, the API reported that U.S. crude inventories rose by 2.3 million barrels, while gasoline and distillate inventories were down nearly 1 million barrels. Analysts were expecting crude oil inventories to increase by only 1.6 million barrels last week.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar dipped against a basket of currencies, trimming gains it made after the surprise rate hike by China. The greenback was ticking lower versus the euro, while trading flat against sterling. The British pound was under pressure after the Bank of England was seen leaning towards extending its quantitative easing program. The buck is ticking lower versus the Swiss Franc and the yen.
Today's focus will be on the official weekly crude oil inventories data from the EIA, due out during trading hours. Analysts expect crude oil inventories to increase by 2.1 million barrels and gasoline inventories to decrease by 1.2 million barrels.
