Oil prices fell from a record high yesterday after a US government report showed near-record crude shipments, lifting stockpile levels in the world's largest energy consumer.
US light sweet crude for September delivery fell 44 cents to $61.45 (€49.8) after hitting a record $62.50 earlier in the day. London Brent crude was down 38 cents at $60.24 after peaking at $61.25 a barrel.
The US Energy Information Administration said yesterday that crude oil inventories rose last week by 200,000 barrels, countering expectations among analysts that the stockpiles would decline sharply.
The surprise increase came as imports soared to their third-highest on record, near 11 million barrels per day, countering higher demand from refineries and slow shipments from Mexico after recent storms.
Tempering yesterday's losses were lingering concerns about recent refinery troubles in the US and Venezuela, and declines in national stockpiles of petrol in the summer driving season.
US gasoline demand is some 1.1 per cent higher than a year ago and car manufacturer General Motors said sales of SUVs, which are heavy petrol consumers, were at an all-time high in July.
A half-dozen refineries in the United States have sustained unplanned unit shutdowns since late July, along with several in Venezuela, underscoring worries that hard-working plants are becoming increasingly vulnerable to problems ahead of seasonal maintenance in the autumn.
"Each problem is a reminder as to how close to the edge we are running," said Deborah White, senior economist at SG Commodities. "The refiners have been running a marathon for two years, they are exhausted."
Among the latest refinery trouble, BP shut two of its three gasoline-making fluid catalytic cracking units at its Texas refinery this week. Motiva Enterprises shut a crude unit in Norco, Louisiana, and Exxon Mobil shut its Joliet, Illinois, plant.
Oil prices are up more than 40 per cent since the start of the year, boosted by worries that the world's overstretched production capacity will struggle to satisfy demand from the United States and the rapidly growing economies of countries such as China and India.
"The economy is moving along pretty well, it's a fairly consistent theme that high prices are not damaging global growth," said Kevin Norrish, analyst at Barclays Capital.
Worries that a record start to the Atlantic hurricane season could spell trouble to come for US offshore oil producers have also underpinned recent strength in the oil markets. - (Reuters)
