“Crude in New York traded near a two- week low, headed for its biggest weekly drop since September as more talks on Iran’s nuclear program get underway.
West Texas Intermediate futures were little changed, poised for a 4.2 percent loss from the March 28 close, the most since the week ended Sept. 21. World powers and Iran started two-day talks in Kazakhstan and U.S. March payroll data will be released later today. Crude stockpiles in the U.S., the world’s largest crude consumer, gained more than forecast last week, to a 22- year high. Declines in London’s Brent crude may be “overdone,” according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
“The market has been a bit negative about payroll figures coming later today, and the surprise could be more on the upside,” said Thina Saltvedt, an analyst at Nordea Bank AG in Oslo.
WTI for May delivery was at $93.12 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down 14 cents, at 10:25 a.m. London time. It fell 1.3 percent to $93.26 yesterday, the lowest settlement since March 21.
Brent for May settlement on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange was at $106.22 a barrel, down 12 cents. It declined 0.7 percent to $106.34 yesterday, the lowest close since Nov. 2. The futures have fallen 11 percent from this year’s intraday peak of $119.17 on Feb. 8.
The European benchmark grade was at a $13.10 premium to WTI, versus $13.08 yesterday. The spread shrank to $12.66 on April 3, the narrowest since July. The volume of WTI contracts traded was 40 percent below the 100-day average while Brent was 15 percent above.
Brent Recovery
Brent may recover from the recent sell-off as global inventories will remain low and economic growth picks up in the second half of the year, Goldman Sachs said in a report yesterday. The bank maintained its second-quarter price projection at $110 a barrel….”
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