Tokyo — Oil prices were little changed on Thursday, after falling in the previous two sessions, as investors shied away from riskier assets amid volatile equity markets. The dollar’s gains also limited interest in commodities. Both global benchmark oil futures fell sharply on Wednesday after US crude and petrol inventories rose unexpectedly. US West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery was up 8c at $61.72 a barrel by 4.03am GMT after settling 2.2% weaker in the previous session. Brent crude for May delivery, the new front-month contract, was down 3c at $64.70. The April contract expired on Wednesday down 1.3%. Both benchmark contracts fell nearly 5% in February, the first monthly decline in six months. "An extended large decline in equities has been prompting investors to avoid risk assets such as oil," said Tomomichi Akuta, senior economist at Mitsubishi UFJ Research and Consulting in Tokyo. Some industry sources said Wednesday’s decline was also due to profit-taking by mark...
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