Oil slips from recent gains, though Middle East tension remains high
Houston — Oil prices slipped on Thursday, pressured by larger-than-expected product inventories in the US, and some profit-taking after a recent run-up in oil benchmarks. Ongoing tension in the Middle East has kept a bid under the market, however, as reduced flows from the Iraqi Kurdish pipeline through Turkey have raised worries about supply. Brent crude fell 64 US cents to $57.52 a barrel from Wednesday’s mid-week high of $58.15 a barrel by 11.35am EDT. The global benchmark is still about 30% above its mid-year levels. US light crude lost 45c to $51.59, and is still almost 25% higher than June’s lows. Analysts said they have seen some profit-taking after two weeks of gains as upward momentum in prices appears to be waning. Energy equities were also weaker, falling to three-and-a-half week lows. "There seems to be a macro sell-off across the board with energy stocks also coming down," said John Kilduff, partner at Again Capital. The US Energy Information Administration said on Wedn...
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