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Crude oil futures traded lower on Wednesday morning following the reports of an increase in crude oil inventories in the US.
At 9.46 am, the April Brent oil futures were at $84.89, down by 0.81 per cent; and March crude oil futures on WTI were at $78.43, down by 0.80 per cent.
February crude oil futures were trading at ₹6,501 on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) in early deals against the previous close of ₹6,566, down by 0.99 per cent; and March futures trading at ₹6,542 against the previous close of ₹6,604, down by 0.94 per cent.
Quoting the statistics of API (American Petroleum Institute) by sources, a Reuters report said the crude oil inventories in the US increased by around 10.5 million barrels for the week ending February 10. It said this increase in the inventories is much more than expected, indicating a decline in the demand for the commodity.
However, the official data from US EIA (Energy Information Administration) is expected later in the day.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) data released by the US Bureau of Labuor Statistics on Tuesday showed that consumer prices in the US grew at a slower pace in January to 6.4 per cent from 6.5 per cent in December. However, it was still above the market expectations of 6.2 per cent.
The monthly oil market report released on Tuesday by OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries), , said the global demand for 2023 is adjusted slightly upwards by 0.1 million barrels a day to stand at 2.3 million barrels a day.
It said, the key to oil demand growth in 2023 will be the return of China from its mandated mobility restrictions and the effect this will have on the country, the region and the world. Concern hovers around the depth and pace of the country’s economic recovery and the consequent impact on oil demand. Much will depend on how the government plans to manoeuvre the delicate balance of curbing Covid infections versus opening up for business, it said.
The report said a number of global economic concerns − including the inflation levels, monetary tightening measures, sovereign debt levels, as well as geopolitical tensions − will weigh on global oil demand prospects.
MCX zinc, castorseed, jeera contracts
February zinc futures were trading at ₹272.60 on MCX in the initial trading hours against the previous close of ₹274.75, down by 0.78 per cent.
On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), February castorseed contracts were trading at ₹6,794 against the previous close of ₹6,718, up by 1.13 per cent.
March jeera futures were trading at ₹30,425 on NCDEX in the early deals against the previous close of ₹30,495, down by 0.23 per cent.
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