Investing.com - Oil prices were down on Thursday in Asia after the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a crude inventory build for a second week in a row.
U.S. Crude Oil WTI Futures dropped 0.4% to $54.99 by 1:45 AM ET (05:45 GMT). International Brent Oil Futures lost 0.6% to $59.12.
The EIA reported a 1.6-million-barrel crude build in the week to August 9 versus market expectations for a 2.8-million-barrel draw.
At 440.5 million barrels, inventories were about 3% above the five-year average for this time of year, the EIA said.
Oil prices also took a hit following weak industrial production, retail sales data in China and an inverted U.S. treasury yield curve that sparked recession fears.
The yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury note fell below that of the 2-year note, inverting the yield curve for the first time since 2007. Some economists consider the yield curve inversion to be an early indicator of a recession. U.S. stock markets plunged overnight.