14 seconds ago 2009-12-09T22:05:02-08:00
SINGAPORE – Oil prices hung below $71 a barrel Thursday in Asia amid growing investor concern that U.S. crude demand isn't improving.
Benchmark crude for January delivery was up 10 cents to $70.77 at midday Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract dropped $1.95 to settle at $70.67 on Wednesday.
Oil has fallen about 13 percent since reaching its high for this year of $82 a barrel in October as traders mull evidence that U.S. demand for crude and its products remains weak despite an overall economic recovery.
On Wednesday, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said U.S. consumption of petroleum products fell to its lowest level since the week of July 10.
The recent price drop reflects an "increasing focus on underlying bearish oil supply and usage balances that are showing little sign of improvement," Galena Illinois-based Ritterbusch and Associates said in a report.
In other Nymex trading in January contracts, heating oil rose 0.71 cent to $1.92 while gasoline gained 0.77 cent to $1.87. Natural gas jumped 2.3 cents to $4.92 per 1,000 cubic feet.
In London, Brent crude for January delivery rose 20 cents to $72.59 on the ICE Futures exchange.
