By Steve Goldstein, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Oil futures traded just below the $80-a-barrel mark Thursday as a lack of interest for equities spelled diminished interest for energy contracts.
Oil futures fell 42 cents to $79.98 a barrel in screen trade.
Natural-gas futures fell 0.1% to $4.72 per million BTUs.
Oil struggled to gain ground in the face of languid demand for equities in Europe, Asia and the U.S. See full story.
On Wednesday, data showed U.S. crude oil inventories dropping 3.9 million barrels in the last week. But the unexpectedly large drawdown wasn't interpreted in a positive way.
"A closer look at the data revealed that most of the drop in oil inventories was due to lower U.S. oil imports. Refinery utilization declined while oil demand remained lackluster," said Stefan Graber, an analyst at Credit Suisse, in a note to clients.
Crude has closed higher for three straight days and four of the last five sessions.
