SINGAPORE: Oil prices dipped on Thursday over fears that Hurricane Irma in the Caribbean could interrupt crude shipments in and out of the United States, and as Libyan output began to recover from disruptions.
However, prices received some support from rising demand in the United States, where Gulf Coast refineries are restarting in the wake of Hurricane Harvey that hit the region less than two weeks ago.
US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were down 18 cents, or 0.4 per cent, at $48.98 barrel at 0687 GMT, but were still close to their highest in more than three weeks, reached in the previous session.
Brent crude futures LCOc1, the benchmark for oil prices outside the United States, dipped 21 cents, or 0.4 per cent, to $53.99 a barrel, remaining near May highs marked the day before.
US Gulf Coast facilities were slowly recovering from the devastating effects of Harvey, which hammered Louisiana and Texas almost two weeks ago, shutting key infrastructure in the heart of the US oil and natural gas industry.
As of Wednesday, about 3.8 million barrels of daily refining capacity, or about 20 per cent, was shut in, although a number of the refineries, as well as petroleum handling ports, were in the process of restarting.
ANZ bank said on Thursday that US crude prices should receive some support “as US refineries increase their oil demand as they recover from recent flooding”. — Reuters
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