Brent crude breaks all-time high, over $61/bbl ahead of US data

Brent crude breaks all-time high, over $61/bbl ahead of US data

London (Platts)--3Aug2005

Front-month September crude futures on London's IPE broke $61/bbl Wednesday to
trade at $61.09/bbl on expectations that US data would show another fall in
crude stocks. 

Front-month September futures had earlier traded at $60.99/bbl up 37cts from
Tuesday's all-time high settle. "Prices have risen on the back of the death of
King Fahd. However, as that does not affect fundamentals, people have
overcooked the market and so the rises are unsustainable. The market should
come off quite a bit," one IPE player said. 

A resistance level of $61.10/bbl is expected as traders look for stop options
with the stats release later Wednesday. "I would be surprised if there was
large buying above all-time highs, especially with no hurricane news
reported," a trader said. US crude oil stocks are likely to have declined by
1.9-mil bbl in the latest US Department of Energy and American Petroleum
Institute data.

With little hurricane activity in the past week "production should have
recovered fully from the latest Gulf of Mexico shutdowns," Jan Stuart, energy
analyst at FIMAT, said in a report. 

A draw in gasoline stocks of 1-mil bbl is forecast as well, in line with
seasonal demand as over the past four weeks stocks have fallen 7.046-mil bbl.
However, "post Hurricane production recovery should limit the decline while
some import slippage and further demand strength drive the expected stock
draw," energy consultant Jim Ritterbusch said in a report. Consensus estimates
were projecting a build in distillate stocks of 1.8-mil bbl. High distillate
yields as a result of an aggressively priced crack spread has allowed
inventories to swell by 22.03-mil bbl over the last ten consecutive weeks.

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