London: Oil prices slipped back from eight-week highs yesterday on expectations of a rise in US crude inventories and a slightly stronger dollar.
US crude inventories probably rose for a sixth straight week as imports edged up and refinery utilisation remained flat, a Reuters survey showed.
Crude oil futures fell $1 (Dh3.67) per barrel on both sides of the Atlantic, with benchmark US futures for April dropping to a low of $80.86, down $1.01, before recovering slightly to trade around $80.94 by 1042 GMT. North Sea Brent crude oil futures slipped to a low of $79.33, down $1.14, before paring losses to stand at $79.49.
"Forecasts of a yet another build in US crude stocks show the disconnect between the fundamentals of oil supply and demand, which are quite bearish, and hopes of economic recovery, which are bullish," said Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch.
"But the market doesn't seem to want to hear negative news for long and tends to react more strongly on the upside. It is two steps upwards, one step down at the moment."
The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) will keep oil production targets on hold when it meets in Vienna on March 17, but could raise output later this year, a Reuters poll showed.
