Oil prices slip towards 18-month lows ahead of New Year
Global over-supply and economic worries weigh on sentiment as US crude inventories rose by 6.9-million barrels last week
London — Oil prices fell on Friday, shedding early gains on profit-taking ahead of the New Year holiday as global crude benchmarks moved back towards their lowest levels in more than a year. Brent crude oil fell 56c to a low of $51.60 a barrel before recovering some ground to trade around $52.05 by 1pm GMT, having earlier risen more than 3%. The futures contract dropped 4.2% on Thursday. US light crude was last up 30c at $44.91, after rising 3.6% in early trade. Oil prices fell to their lowest in almost 18 months this week and are down more than 20% for the year, depressed by rising US supply and concern over global economic growth. Stock markets in Europe and Asia rose on Friday after Wall Street ended a volatile session with big gains, but fears of further price swings and worries about US politics kept investors cautious. Traders appeared to be squaring their books ahead of expected light volumes on Monday and a market closure on Tuesday for the New Year’s Day holiday. “Looks lik...
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