Oil Futures Slip Ahead Of Inventory Data

Benchmark U.S. crude-oil futures slipped in Asian trading hours on Tuesday, as investors held back ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting and oil data due later in the week.

Oil for October delivery CLV2 lost 28 cents to trade at $96.26 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Crude-oil futures had advanced marginally on Monday in New York to settle 12 cents higher at $96.54 a barrel. Read more on Monday’s oil-market action.

“The results of this week’s U.S. inventory data and then Thursday’s statement from the [Fed are] high on every oil trader’s list,” said Tim Evans, energy futures specialist at Citi Futures.

The Fed’s Federal Open Market Committee starts its two-day rate meeting on Wednesday.

While there’s been a shift toward expecting a Fed policy response to a softer U.S. economy, the outcome of the FOMC meeting is still uncertain, said Evans.

“With expectations running high, there is some risk of a sell-the-news reaction, even if the Fed does take action,” he said.

“The same sort of sell-the-news reaction could also exist with regard to the weekly U.S. inventory data,” said Evans.

Citi analysts are expecting a “supportive” decline in crude stocks, but “this may not be enough of a surprise to spark fresh buying,” he said.

Weekly inventory data from the American Petroleum Institute and U.S. Energy Information Administration are also due out Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.

Evans said that monthly production forecast updates from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and the U.S. Department of Energy due Tuesday, and from the International Energy Agency on Wednesday, could also sway the energy market.

Elsewhere in the energy complex, October gasoline RBV2 traded flat at $3.02 a gallon, while October heating oil HOV2 edged down 1 cent to $3.16 a gallon.

Natural gas for October delivery NGV12 also traded flat at $2.82 per million British thermal units.

Marketwatch