Crude Oil Ends Higher After Supply Data; Sheds 24% For Quarter

(RTTNews) - U.S. crude oil futures ended slightly lower on Wednesday, after a report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed an increase in crude stockpiles last week, although the loss was somewhat limited as domestic production declined due to the refinery maintenance season.

Crude oil futures dropped 24 percent for the quarter, and 8.4 percent for the month.

Early Wednesday, data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed crude stockpiles in the U.S. to have climbed 4.0 million barrels in the week ended September 25, while analysts anticipated an increase 0.1 million barrels. Total U.S. crude stockpiles aggregated 457.9 million barrels end last week.

Gasoline supplies rose 3.3 million barrels, with analysts anticipating a decrease 0.5 million barrels last week. Distillate stockpiles, including heating oil, fell 0.3 million barrels last week, even as analysts expected a decline of 1.2 million barrels.

Total domestic production of crude oil for the week dropped 48,000 barrels to about 9.1 million barrels a day. The EIA said refinery utilization dropped to 89.8 percent due to the maintenance season, from 90.9 percent a week earlier.

Meanwhile, data from the oil and gas industry trade group, the American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday said crude supplies surged 4.6 million barrels end last week.

Light Sweet Crude Oil futures for November delivery, the most actively traded contract, dropped $0.14 or 0.3 percent, to settle at $45.09 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Wednesday.

Crude prices for November delivery scaled a high of $45.85 a barrel intraday and a low of $44.68.

On Tuesday, crude oil jumped $0.80 or 1.8 percent, to settle at $45.23 a barrel, ahead of the weekly crude oil data, with investors anticipating a decline in domestic production.

In economic news, a report from payroll processor ADP on Wednesday showed stronger than expected private sector job growth in September, reflecting strong job growth at large businesses. Private sector employment jumped by 200,000 jobs in September following a downwardly revised increase of 186,000 jobs in August. Economists expected an increase of about 190,000 jobs, which would have matched the job growth originally reported for the previous month.

A report from MNI Indicators on Wednesday showed an unexpected contraction in Chicago-area business activity in September, with production growth collapsing and new orders falling sharply. MNI Indicators said its Chicago business barometer tumbled to 48.7 in September from 54.4 in August, with a reading below 50 indicating a contraction. Economists expected the barometer to decrease to 53.6, which would have still indicated growth.

The euro area unemployment rate remained unchanged at an elevated level in August as businesses generated fewer jobs amid weak economic growth. The jobless rate held steady at double-digit 11 percent in August, data from Eurostat showed Wednesday. The figure was expected to remain at July's originally estimated rate of 10.9 percent.

Eurozone experienced deflation in September for the first time in six months as energy prices decreased further adding pressure on the European Central Bank to initiate more quantitative easing. Consumer prices unexpectedly fell by 0.1 percent year-on-year in September, offsetting a 0.1 percent rise in August, flash data from Eurostat showed Wednesday. Economists had forecast prices to remain flat.

German unemployment increased unexpectedly in September, reports said citing data from the Federal Labor Agency on Wednesday. The number of unemployed increased by 2,000 from August, confounding expectations for a decline of 5,000. At the same time, the jobless rate stood steady at 6.4 percent in September as expected by economists.

Germany's retail sales decreased unexpectedly in August after rising in the previous month, data from Destatis showed Wednesday. Retail sales, in real terms, fell a seasonally and calendar-adjusted 0.4 percent month-over-month in August, confounding economists' expectations for a 0.2 percent increase. In July, sales had risen 1.6 percent.

Germany's unemployment rate dropped marginally in August, figures from Destatis showed Wednesday. The jobless rate dropped to an adjusted 4.5 percent in August from 4.6 percent in the previous month. In the corresponding month last year, the rate was 5.0 percent.

French producer prices continued its downward trend in August largely due to a sharp decrease in refined petroleum product prices, the statistical office INSEE reported Wednesday. Producer prices declined 2.1 percent in August from last year after falling 1.6 percent in July.

France's consumer spending remained unchanged in August, after rising in the previous months, as smaller changes for most of the goods offset each other, statistical office INSEE said Wednesday. Consumer spending in volume remained steady after a 0.3 percent rise in July and 0.4 percent in June.

The U.K. economy grew as initially estimated in the second quarter, data from the Office for National Statistics showed Wednesday. Gross domestic product grew 0.7 percent from the first quarter, unrevised from the second estimate published on August 28. It was faster than the 0.4 percent expansion seen in the first quarter.

U.K. house prices grew at the fastest pace in four months during September, the Nationwide Building Society said Wednesday. House prices increased 3.8 percent year-on-year in September, the fastest since May, when it grew 4.6 percent. The annual growth matched expectations and faster than August's 3.2 percent increase.

Consumer confidence in the United Kingdom was down in September, the latest survey from GfK showed on Wednesday with an index score of +3. That was shy of expectations for +5 and down from +7 in August.