Oil Extends Drop as US Stockpiles Build, Foreigners Exit Gaza - Yahoo Finance

Oil Extends Drop as US Stockpiles Build, Foreigners Exit Gaza

(Bloomberg) -- Oil extended a three-day losing streak amid signs of a more amply supplied market and as investors assess the risks posed by the war between Israel and Hamas.

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West Texas Intermediate settled below $81, at the lowest in two months, after a volatile session that saw prices swing in a $3 range. American citizens and foreign nationals will be able to exit Gaza, which is the first such development since Israel began its ground invasion. The announcement helped erase the war’s risk premium.

Fundamentally, crude is also seeing bearish headwinds as US stockpiles rose both nationwide and at the nation’s largest storage hub in Cushing, Oklahoma. WTI’s prompt spread narrowed to as low as 33 cents, a sign traders have less concern about the immediate availability of barrels. The US benchmark also crossed beneath its 100-day moving average for the first time since July, a bearish technical sign that may trigger more selling.

Meanwhile, Israeli forces continued moving gradually into the Gaza Strip, with the army reporting its first casualties since the start of the land assault. Iran renewed a call for an oil embargo of Israel by Muslim countries. Some foreigners and Palestinians were allowed to leave Gaza for the first time since Israel began its ground invasion on Wednesday.

Away from the war, data on global demand remained mixed. US consumption hit the highest level in four years in August. But manufacturing in China, the world’s biggest oil importer, fell back into contraction last month, while BP Plc said global gasoline and diesel markets are oversupplied.

Terminal users can click here for more on the Israel-Hamas War.

(Updates with settlement prices. An earlier version removed an incorrect reference to earlier numbers in the fifth paragraph.)

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