The price of crude oil was extending losses Tuesday as traders await more cues on the demand outlook, with the US dollar trading flat versus a basket of currencies.
Light Sweet Crude Oil (WTI) futures for December delivery, slipped $0.17 to $92.86 a barrel. Yesterday, oil settled lower on demand growth concerns as the supply scenario remained fluid after Saudi Arabia increased its oil production and exports, with September shipments scaling an eight-year high. Investors also weighed some wide-ranging reforms announced by China after its Plenum meet and the upcoming talks between Iran and western powers on the Middle East country's nuclear program.
This morning the U.S. dollar was hovering around its 2-week high versus the euro and sterling, while trading near its 2-month high against the yen. The buck was lingering around its 2-week low versus the Swiss franc.
In economic news, Germany's economic sentiment rose more-than-expected in November to its highest level in four years, results of a survey by the Centre for European Economic Research/ZEW showed. The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for Germany rose to 54.6 from 52.8 in October. Economists had forecast a score of 54. The latest reading is the highest since October 2009, ZEW said.
Elsewhere, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development downgraded its global growth projections citing worsening outlook for some emerging economies. The world economy will grow 2.7 percent this year, down from 3.1 percent projected in May, it said. In 2014, growth is forecast to rise to 3.6 percent and then to 3.9 percent in 2015. The estimate for 2014 was lowered from 4 percent.
From the U.S., the Labor Department will release its employment cost index for the third quarter at 8:30 am ET. Economists expect the index to have risen 0.5 percent quarter-over-quarter, the same pace of increase as in the second quarter.
Today after the market hours, the API will release its US crude oil inventories report for the weekended November 15.
