NEW YORK, Feb 10 – Oil prices fell on Thursday, snapping a three-day winning streak, reported Xinhua.
The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for March delivery dropped 41 cents, or 0.52 per cent, to settle at US$78.06 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for April delivery lost 59 cents, or 0.69 per cent, to close at US$84.5 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
The pullback came as “traders took profits after the recent rally”, Vladimir Zernov, analyst with market information supplier FX Empire, said on Thursday.
Also weighing on the market was a build in US fuel stockpiles.
The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported Wednesday that the country’s commercial crude oil inventories increased by 2.4 million barrels during the week ending Feb 3. Analysts polled by S&P Global Commodity Insights had expected a rise of 2.1 million barrels in crude supplies.
According to the EIA, total motor gasoline inventories jumped by 5 million barrels last week, while distillate fuel inventories increased by 2.9 million barrels.
