Crude down in Asia on profit taking, stockpile rise

SINGAPORE – Oil dipped into negative territory in Asia on Wednesday amid forecasts of a stockpile rise as traders took profits after an overnight rally which saw US crude prices almost hit $100 a barrel.

New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in December, fell 72 cents to $98.65 per barrel in the afternoon.

Brent North Sea crude for January delivery shed 57 cents to $111.61.

Oil traders were reaping profits from the market after an overnight rally saw US crude prices rise as high as $99.84 before tailing off slightly, said Ker Chung Yang, commodity analyst for Phillip Futures in Singapore.

“I think the prices have risen to nearly the $100 per barrel level so it could be due to some profit taking activities,” he told AFP.

Ker added that market enthusiasm was also tempered by forecasts from the American Petroleum Institute (API) of an unexpected rise in US crude inventories last week.

API figures released late Tuesday predicted US stocks to rise by 1.3 million barrels, at odds with analyst forecasts of a 1.2 million barrel drawdown.

“Yesterday we saw crude stocks rising so it’s kind of bearish news for crude as well,” Ker said.