Oil prices rise on signs of tighter market
Analysts say Opec would have to extend output cuts to complete the rebalancing of the market, while possible fresh US sanctions on Iran could take out more supply
Singapore — Oil prices rose on Friday as both US crude production and inventories declined, pointing towards a tightening market. Strong Chinese oil import data also supported crude prices, traders said. With the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) leading a production cut, analysts said that global oil markets were now broadly balanced after years of oversupply. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were trading at $50.88 a barrel at 3.50am GMT, up 28c or 0.6% from their last settlement. US crude inventories dropped 2.7-million barrels in the week to October 6, to 462.22-million barrels, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said late on Thursday. Crude production slipped by 81,000 barrels a day to 9.48-million barrels a day. In international markets, Brent crude futures were at $56.51, up 26c or 0.5%. Strong Chinese oil imports, which averaged 8.5-million barrels a day between January and September, also supported prices, traders said. September...
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