Oil price rallies following 6pc slump

Oil prices rallied more than 2 per cent yesterday, clawing back part of a 6 per cent slump triggered by a jump in US crude inventories and record Saudi output, although analysts said sentiment remained bearish.
By The Newsroom
Published 9th Apr 2015, 14:38 BST

A 10.95-million-barrel surge in US crude stockpiles to an all-time high of 482.4 million last week, the biggest gain in 14 years, and Saudi oil production of 10.3 million barrels a day (bpd) in March battered crude on Wednesday.

But traders said the sell-off had been overdone and some recovery and a rebalancing of positions was understandable after such a sharp fall.

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“Brent fell to the bottom of its $55 to $60 trading range on Wednesday and has consequently turned higher,” said Carsten Fritsch, senior oil and commodities analyst at Commerzbank.

“Huge volatility has been the name of the game in the past few days,” Fritsch added.

Close-to-close price volatility for Brent is at levels last seen during the height of the global financial crisis of 2008/2009, Reuters data show.

US oil inventories are rising fast as domestic oil production outstrips US demand and the ability of US refiners to process crude oil.

Cushing, the delivery point for US crude oil futures contracts, is now filled to 85 per cent of its total working capacity of 70.1 million barrels, industry analysts estimate.