DTN Oil Update
WTI Dips to $57, Pressured by US Crude Build
SECAUCUS, N.J. (DTN) -- Oil futures fell for a third straight day on Thursday, Oct. 16, after the third consecutive weekly build in U.S. crude stockpiles reported by the Energy Information Administration.
The NYMEX WTI contract for November delivery fell $0.81 to settle at $57.46 bbl, while ICE Brent for December delivery slid $0.62 to $61.29.
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November RBOB gasoline futures were down $0.0181 at $1.8163 gallon, and front-month ULSD futures fell $0.0189 to $2.1559 gallon.
The U.S. Dollar Index dipped by 0.391 points to 98.15 against a basket of foreign currencies.
Oil futures rose briefly in morning trading after U.S. officials indicated that India and Japan might stop buying Russian oil -- a claim not confirmed by the two countries.
However, prices later fell driven by weekly EIA data and remarks from U.S. President Donald Trump, who announced plans to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.
The EIA reported that U.S. commercial crude stocks jumped 3.5 million bbl to 423.8 million bbl during the week ended Oct. 10, after two prior weekly builds of 3.7 million bpd and 600,000 bpd. With the new additions, inventories stand at about 3.3 million bbl above the volume reported in the same week of last year.
In the profiled week, gasoline stockpiles slipped by 300,000 bbl to 218.8 million bbl, following a small decline the prior week, EIA data showed. Distillate dropped a sizeable 4.6 million bbl to 117 million bbl, reversing the prior week's modest build.
Sharp upward revisions in crude inventories around the world, along with U.S.-China trade tensions, have weighed on WTI and Brent pricing, dragging the two benchmarks to five month-lows.
On Tuesday, Oct. 14, the International Energy Agency forecasted a record crude stockpile of 4 million bbl for 2026. On the trade front, Washington criticized Beijing's recent restrictions on rare earths exports calling them a "global supply chain power grab."