Oil Trades Near Three-Month High as U.S. Gasoline Supplies Fall

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Oil traded near the highest level in three months as rising U.S. gasoline demand trimmed supplies of the fuel to the lowest since January.

Futures were little changed in New York after gaining 4.9 percent Wednesday. Consumption of the fuel was at the highest level since September the past four weeks, reducing gasoline inventories for a third week, according to data from the Energy Information Administration. U.S. output was steady while stockpiles expanded, keeping supplies at the most since 1930. Nigerian oil exports are set to drop to a two-year low after a terminal shutdown.

Oil has recouped its losses this year after slumping to a 12-year low last month amid speculation stronger demand and falling U.S. production will ease a supply glut. The time and date of a meeting among major producers including Saudi Arabia to discuss freezing output remains uncertain, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said, according to a report from Interfax.

West Texas Intermediate for April delivery was at $38.21 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down 8 cents, at 9:01 a.m. Hong Kong time. The contract gained $1.79 to $38.29 on Wednesday, the highest close since Dec. 4. Total volume traded was about 60 percent below the 100-day average.

Brent for May settlement lost 20 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $40.87 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. The contract on Wednesday climbed $1.42, or 3.6 percent, to $41.07 a barrel. The European benchmark crude traded at a premium of 93 cents to WTI for May.

Source: Bloomberg

Gold Holds Decline as Investors Await ECB Update on Stimulus

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Gold held is drop as investors await a monetary policy review from the European Central Bank and holdings in exchange-traded product backed by bullion fell.

Bullion for immediate delivery traded at $1,252.40 an ounce at 8:54 a.m. in Singapore after closing at $1,253.23 a day earlier, when prices lost 0.7 percent, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. Assets in exchange-traded funds shrank for the first time in 19 days, ending the longest run since 2010, according to data compiled by Bloomberg as of Tuesday.

The yellow metal is still up 18 percent this year as demand for haven assets surged amid volatility in financial markets and expectations of slow growth potentially leading to further monetary intervention. Updates from the ECB on Thursday and the Federal Reserve next week may shed light on the potential for more stimulus and the trajectory of interest rates.

Gold prices “broke support levels established in the last week,” Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. said in a note on Thursday. “We expect that the ECB will step-up its policy accommodation to support the economy in an environment of low inflation”.

Source: Bloomberg

Chinese Stocks Fall for Second Day After Inflation Data

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China’s stocks fell for a second day after data showed inflation accelerated more-than-estimated and producer prices extended declines.

The Shanghai Composite Index dropped 0.4 percent as of 9:32 a.m. local time. The benchmark gauge pared losses in the last half an hour of trading on Wednesday on speculation state-backed funds were repeating a recent pattern of intervening to prop up the market. The consumer-price index rose 2.3 percent in February from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said Thursday, compared with the forecast for a 1.8 percent gain. The producer-price index’s declines reached a record 48 months.

Source: Bloomberg

Asian Stocks Head for First Gain This Week on Stimulus Outlook

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Asian stocks climbed for the first day this week amid speculation central banks will provide additional stimulus to bolster global economic growth.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.4 percent to 125.51 as of 9:04 a.m. in Tokyo, halting three days of losses. U.S. shares rebounded with crude oil on Wednesday ahead of Thursday’s European Central Bank meeting that may provide more insight on the potential for further steps to loosen policy and the trajectory of interest rates. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand unexpectedly cut interest rates to a fresh record low and signaled further easing may be needed, saying it’s concerned by a slump in inflation expectations.

New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 Index jumped 0.7 percent, heading for a record close. Reserve Bank Governor Graeme Wheeler lowered the official cash rate by a quarter point to 2.25 percent, a move predicted by just two of 17 economists surveyed by Bloomberg.

Source: Bloomberg

Japanese Stocks Rise Amid Weaker Yen Ahead of ECB Policy Meeting

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Japanese stocks rose, with the Topix index jumping for the first time in four days, as a weaker yen boosted exporters while investors awaited a policy meeting by the European Central Bank.

The Topix added 1.2 percent to 1,348.68 as of 9:03 a.m. in Tokyo, with all but one of the 33 industry groups rising. The gauge fell 3.1 percent over the previous three sessions, after rallying 15 percent in three weeks. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average advanced 1.2 percent to 16,834.17 on Thursday. The yen traded at 113.29 per dollar after falling 0.7 percent on Wednesday. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index climbed 0.5 percent on Wednesday ahead of the ECB meeting.

The ECB on Thursday and the Federal Reserve’s meeting next week may provide more insight on the potential for further stimulus and the trajectory of interest rates. The Bank of Japan will also decide on policy on March 15.

West Texas Intermediate crude climbed 4.9 percent to $38.29 per barrel on Wednesday after the Energy Information Administration said gasoline supplies fell last week, more than analyst estimates.

Futures on the S&P 500 were little changed. The underlying equity gauge’s gain on Wednesday came amid speculation central banks will continue to provide stimulus to bolster sluggish global growth.

Source: Bloomberg