(Bloomberg) — Oil prices stabilized ahead of weekly inventory data from the U.S. that could show another rise in crude oil inventories nationwide.
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Brent crude traded near $85 a barrel after a low-volume session due to a holiday in the United States, while West Texas Intermediate crude hovered around $82. The US Energy Information Administration will release the image later Thursday, a day later than normally scheduled. An industry report published earlier this week pointed to gains.
Oil prices have followed the path of other assets recently, including stocks, but there have also been near-term signs of a stronger market in the futures curve. Crude oil’s recent advance helped push Brent’s implied volatility to a six-year low.
Brent is still on track to achieve monthly gains after OPEC+ extended supply cuts and said that any subsequent plan to return barrels would depend on market conditions. Traders are also tracking demand expectations, as refineries in Asia have regained some capacity after maintenance despite weak margins.
“Today we are waiting for inventory data,” said Arne Lohmann Rasmussen, head of research at A/S Global Risk Management. “After the API data, the market is ready to build, so I think there is room for a positive surprise here.”
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