CME/Nymex February crude oil shed $1.28 to close at $89.84/bbl

摘要

Crude oil regressed by the largest amount in nearly a month and a half after the weekly Department of Energy (DOE) oil inventory report showed a smaller-than-anticipated decline in oil stocks. Futures tumbled to an intraday low of $89.02/bbl as a result. Some of today’s downward momentum was attributed to a rising dollar amid improving jobs data, as the US Dept of Labor Department announced that first-time applications for unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level since July 2008. Oil also found some weakness after China showed that manufacturing growth retreated for the first time in five months in December as the government constricted its monetary policy, raised interest rates, and increased its energy-efficiency and pollution objectives.