Oil prices were lower in Asian trade today after the US central bank failed to announce any new economic stimulus measures at the end of a two-day meeting, analysts said.
New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in September, shed 12 cents to $88.79 a barrel and Brent North Sea crude for September delivery fell 14 cents to $105.82.
Oil prices were pressured “after the US Federal Reserve said the economy had lost some momentum but offered no new stimulus that could shore up growth and translate into higher fuel demand,” analysts Phillip Futures said in a report.
The Fed’s decision to keep monetary policy unchanged on yesterday was widely expected but disappointed some investors who had hoped for additional economic stimulus.
Despite inching lower, crude markets were supported by “positive economic data out of China, and on some tightening of US oil fundamentals,” said Mr Sanjeev Gupta, who heads the Asia-Pacific oil and gas practice at Ernst and Young.
Data released from the US overnight showed crude stockpiles falling by 6.5 million barrels in the week ending July 27, instead of the much smaller drop of 800,000 barrels expected by analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires.
The date indicated that energy demand in the world’s largest oil consumer was holding up.
Meanwhile, China’s manufacturing activity picked up modestly to a three-month high in July as factory output rose, boosted by government measures to stimulate the economy, HSBC had said yesterday.