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Crude falls on soft U.S. jobs report, supply concerns

Published 09/05/2014, 01:25 PM
Updated 09/05/2014, 01:26 PM
Oil slides on disappointing U.S. jobs data, supply concerns

Oil slides on disappointing U.S. jobs data, supply concerns

Investing.com - Oil prices fell on Friday after a disappointing jobs report stoked concerns that the U.S. economy still battles headwinds and may consume less energy and fuel going forward than once anticipated, especially at a time when global supply remains ample.

In the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate crude oil for delivery in October traded down 0.95% at $93.55 a barrel during U.S. trading. New York-traded oil futures hit a session low of $92.89 a barrel and a high of $94.99 a barrel.

The October contract settled down 1.14% at $94.45 a barrel on Thursday.

Nymex oil futures were likely to find support at $92.68 a barrel, Tuesday's low, and resistance at $96.00 a barrel, the high from Aug. 29.

The Department of Labor reported earlier that the U.S. economy added 142,000 jobs in August, far less than the expected increase of 225,000. July's figure was revised to a 212,000 increase from a previously estimated rise of 209,000.

The report also showed that the U.S. unemployment rate ticked down to 6.1% last month, from 6.2%, in line with expectations.

The data came a day after payroll processor ADP reported that its nonfarm payrolls report showed that the private sector added 204,000 jobs in August, missing expectations for jobs growth of 220,000.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen has said that slackness persists in the labor market despite an improving economy, and the disappointing data softened oil prices, especially due to concerns that the global economy is awash in supply.

On Thursday, data revealed that U.S. commercial crude oil inventories (excluding those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve) dropped by 0.9 million barrels in the week ending Aug. 29 from the previous week, less than market forecasts for a decline of 1.1 million barrels.

At 359.6 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are in the upper half of the average range for this time of year, the Energy Information Administration said in a report.

Total motor gasoline inventories fell by 2.3 million barrels last week compared to market calls for a decline of 1.3 million barrels.

Distillate fuel inventories increased by 0.6 million barrels last week, confounding market calls for a draw of 0.5 million barrels, which also helped tip crude prices downward.

Separately, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil futures for October delivery were down 0.96% at US$100.86 a barrel, while the spread between Brent and U.S. crude contracts stood at US$7.31 a barrel.

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