LONDON: Brent crude oil jumped by more than a dollar to $99 a barrel on Thursday, snapping a six-session losing streak, with dealers saying it looked oversold after losing 10 percent this month.
Oil earlier fell to a fresh nine-month low amid a wider commodities rout triggered by data on Monday showing growth in China had slowed unexpectedly in the first three months of 2013.
But investors saw that the slide had run out of steam, with some looking to move back into the market at lower levels.
Brent crude futures for June delivery were up $1.41 at $99.10 per barrel at 0933 GMT, the day's high. The price had earlier slipped to $96.75, its weakest since July last year.
Brent prices shed more than 8 percent in the six sessions to Wednesday, their steepest 6-day drop since September 2011.
US crude futures added $1.10 to $87.78 a barrel, after earlier shedding more than $1 to hit a low of $85.61.
Tony Machacek, broker at Jefferies Bache said there was scope for further weakness in coming sessions.
"The market looks a tad oversold on a technical basis, but after the price consolidates, it won't look so stretched on a relative strength basis and we could see another leg lower."
Supply concerns also supported prices as Royal Dutch Shell declared force majeure on Nigerian Bonny Light crude oil exports after shutting down the 150,000 barrel per day Nembe Creek pipeline for repairs, the company said on Wednesday.
The weekly report from the US government's Energy Information Administration showed a surprise drop in US crude inventories, but an increase in distillate and gasoline supplies on the US East Coast, which includes the New York harbour.
Stockpiles of crude at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery point for the US oil futures contract, however, climbed by more than a million barrels, the data showed.
The EIA report follows a cut in global growth projections by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for this year and next.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.