OIL

Oil fluctuated in New York yesterday on expectation US stockpiles increased from a three-month low last week and as prices of petrol and heating oil gained on refinery shutdowns.

Brent crude for February settlement rose 41c to $111.81 a barrel (R6.01 a litre) in the afternoon in London. In New York, light sweet crude slid 10c to $93.09 a barrel.

Prices moved between gains and losses as inventories probably rose 2 million barrels, a Bloomberg survey before an Energy Department report today, shows. Oil gained as much as 0.7 percent earlier as products jumped after Motiva Enterprises shut a crude unit at its Port Arthur, Texas, refinery on Sunday.

“There is an expectation that inventories will rise and that’s one of the reasons that crude is more subdued than products,” Price Futures Group senior market analyst Phil Flynn said. “The strong product prices are offset by the fact that we are expecting a crude inventory build.” – Bloomberg