Oil inches hover around US$49, rise on hope of US economy beginning to stabilize

03-Apr-09

Crude oil that dipped by over one dollar on Wednesday on news of rise in US inventory levels has recoiled. Crude inventories increased by 2.8 mln barrels to 359.4 mln barrels for the week ended March 27 – levels not seen since July 1993. Crude for May rose past US$49 a barrel on the Nymex in Asia, on hopeful signs of stabilizing economy weighed against concerns of weak global demand. In London, Brent prices rose 62 cents to $49.06 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.