What's Moving the Oil Markets?

What's Moving the Oil Markets?

•IPE Brent futures firmed early Thursday following Wednesday's sharp sell-off with funds returning to the market after Tehran announced it would continue its controversial uranium enrichment work and warned the UN Security Council against choosing a "path of confrontation", brokers said.

•Also causing a few jitters in the market was a statement from Israel's army chief Dan Halutz on Thursday, who warned that Israel's offensive in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories "could last a long time".

•The US Energy Information Administration reported a 200,000 barrel build in crude inventories. This is in contrast to expectations for a 225,000 barrel draw and the 940,000 barrel decline reported by American Petroleum Institute. The EIA also reported a 1.5 million barrel build in gasoline stocks in contrast to analysts' projections for a 975,000 barrel drop, and higher than the 1.3 million barrel increase reported by API.

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