PERTH: Oil fell again on Thursday to below $37 a barrel, extending an overnight 1.3 per cent decline on another build in US crude stocks and grim data from the world's major economies.
Asian shares followed their US counterparts down, hitting a 5-week low as weak US retail sales data overnight was followed by a record fall in Japanese machinery orders, while continued strength in the dollar against the euro also weighed on crude.
US light crude for February delivery fell by 71 cents to $36.57 a barrel by 0306 GMT, after settling down 50 cents on Wednesday.
London Brent crude fell 28 cents to $44.80 a barrel. "The flow of international economic news remains poor, leaving a range of commodity and energy prices under pressure," said David Moore, a commodity strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
The US Commerce Department said on Wednesday that total retail sales fell 2.7 per cent to a seasonally adjusted $343.2 billion last month following a revised 2.1 per cent drop in November, previously reported as a 1.8 per cent decline.
Underlining the global nature of the economic problems, the German economy contracted sharply in the final quarter of 2008 and euro zone industrial output plunged in November.
Slowing economic growth means less need for oil, a link confirmed by figures showing US distillate demand fell to the lowest level in five years, causing stocks to surge by 6.4 million barrels in the week to Jan. 9.
Crude stocks also rose for the third consecutive week, by 1.2 million barrels to 326.6 million barrels, according to the Energy Information Administration.
Supplies at the NYMEX delivery point in Cushing, Oklahoma, were up 800,000 barrels to 33 million barrels, a record storage level at the site.
Analysts said oil traders will be looking towards US economic indicators due out later on Thursday, including weekly jobless claims and monthly producer price changes, to gauge how the economy is faring.
Oil prices have toppled from record highs over $147 a barrel struck in July as the economic crisis clips global oil demand, with the EIA now forecasting world consumption will drop by more than 800,000 barrels per day (bpd) this year.
With recent supply cuts by producer group OPEC having had little success in propping up collapsing oil prices, several members, including top exporter Saudi Arabia, have said that the group may reduce output again in March.
Soruce: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/Economy/Oil_falls_below_37_on_demand_outlook_stock_build/articleshow/3981237.cms
Asian shares followed their US counterparts down, hitting a 5-week low as weak US retail sales data overnight was followed by a record fall in Japanese machinery orders, while continued strength in the dollar against the euro also weighed on crude.
US light crude for February delivery fell by 71 cents to $36.57 a barrel by 0306 GMT, after settling down 50 cents on Wednesday.
London Brent crude fell 28 cents to $44.80 a barrel. "The flow of international economic news remains poor, leaving a range of commodity and energy prices under pressure," said David Moore, a commodity strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
The US Commerce Department said on Wednesday that total retail sales fell 2.7 per cent to a seasonally adjusted $343.2 billion last month following a revised 2.1 per cent drop in November, previously reported as a 1.8 per cent decline.
Underlining the global nature of the economic problems, the German economy contracted sharply in the final quarter of 2008 and euro zone industrial output plunged in November.
Slowing economic growth means less need for oil, a link confirmed by figures showing US distillate demand fell to the lowest level in five years, causing stocks to surge by 6.4 million barrels in the week to Jan. 9.
Crude stocks also rose for the third consecutive week, by 1.2 million barrels to 326.6 million barrels, according to the Energy Information Administration.
Supplies at the NYMEX delivery point in Cushing, Oklahoma, were up 800,000 barrels to 33 million barrels, a record storage level at the site.
Analysts said oil traders will be looking towards US economic indicators due out later on Thursday, including weekly jobless claims and monthly producer price changes, to gauge how the economy is faring.
Oil prices have toppled from record highs over $147 a barrel struck in July as the economic crisis clips global oil demand, with the EIA now forecasting world consumption will drop by more than 800,000 barrels per day (bpd) this year.
With recent supply cuts by producer group OPEC having had little success in propping up collapsing oil prices, several members, including top exporter Saudi Arabia, have said that the group may reduce output again in March.
Soruce: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/Economy/Oil_falls_below_37_on_demand_outlook_stock_build/articleshow/3981237.cms
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