Oil market wary on nixed signals from Saudi Arabia
Analyst warns that ‘oil is on a slippery slope’ following ‘a surprisingly swift and pronounced change in the market mood from shortage fears to glut concerns’
Singapore — Oil markets were trading cautiously on Tuesday, with mixed signals coming from top exporter Saudi Arabia ahead of an Opec meeting in Austria next week. International Brent crude oil futures briefly dipped below $60 a barrel before rising back to $60.50 at 4.16am GMT, 2c above their last close. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $51.48 a barrel, down 15c. Saudi Arabia raised oil production to a record high in November, an industry source said on Monday, pumping 11.1-million to 11.3-million barrels a day during the month. Oil prices have lost almost a third of their value since early October, weighed down by an emerging supply overhang and widespread financial market weakness. “Oil is on a slippery slope,” said Norbert Ruecker, head of commodity research at Swiss bank Julius Baer. Ruecker said the weak sentiment “follows a surprisingly swift and pronounced change in the market mood from shortage fears to glut concerns”, while the world economy was also ...
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