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Thursday, August 16, 2012

Crude oil futures prices 8/16/2012

Crude oil futures prices 8/16/2012 : Crude oil futures moved sharply higher during U.S. afternoon trade Thursday, despite a flurry of mostly disappointing U.S. economic data underlining concerns over the strength of the nation’s economy.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in September traded at USD95.23 a barrel during U.S. afternoon trade, soaring 0.95%.

n a report, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said that its manufacturing index improved by 5.8 points to minus 7.1 in August from July’s reading of minus 12.9.

Analysts had expected the index to improve by 7.9 points to a reading of minus 5.0 in August.

The report came after the Department of Labor said the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week rose to 366,000, a four-week high and slightly above expectations for an increase to 365,000.

In a separate report, the U.S. Commerce Department said housing starts fell by 1.1% in July to a seasonally adjusted 0.746 million last month, compared to expectations for a decline of 0.5% to 0.757 million.

However, the number of building permits issued in July rose 6.8% to 0.812 million, compared to expectations for an increase of 1.2% to 0.770 million.

The U.S. is the world’s biggest oil-consuming country, responsible for almost 22% of global oil demand.

Oil prices were higher during Asian trading hours after Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said late Wednesday that slowing inflation provides “growing room for monetary policy operation” to spur growth in the world’s second largest economy.

The remarks added to ongoing speculation policy makers in Beijing will cut banks’ reserve requirements or benchmark interest rates again after inflation cooled to a 30-month low in July.

The People’s Bank of China has lowered both twice so far this year in an effort to boost lending and stimulate growth.

The Asian nation is the world’s second largest oil consumer, trailing only the U.S.

Renewed fears over escalating violence in Syria and lingering tensions between Iran and the West have also been supporting prices in recent sessions.

Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for October delivery shed 0.35% to trade at USD113.91 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD19.53 a barrel.

Earlier in the day, London-traded Brent prices touched USD114.83 a barrel, the highest since May 4.

Brent prices have been well-supported in recent weeks, rallying nearly 22% from the lows touched in June, amid growing concerns over tightening supplies from the North Sea region and following the launch of Western-led sanctions targeting Iranian oil exports on July 1.

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