Crude Oil fell nearly 1% toward $71 on Wednesday, giving up some of the previous day's gains of 3%, as a higher-than-expected rise in oil product stocks outweighed news signaling a U.S. economic recovery.
Though Crude Oil has more than doubled from this year's low of $32.70 hit on January 20, it is trading 72$ below the record high of more than $147 struck in July 2008. Economists expect Crude prices to hover between $60 and $70, as demand has still not recovered to the extent that would help to sustain prices above $70.
The American Petroleum Institute said in its weekly inventory report after Tuesday's close that crude stocks rose by 631,000 barrels last week, against the forecast for a 2.4-million-barrel drawdown. The oil market is currently focusing more on EIA data than equities or the Dollar, analysts have said.
While today's release of US inventory data due at 14:30 GMT is expected to show a drop in stockpiles, a modest drop might not be enough to push Oil on another rally as inventories are still at their highest level.
