• Global crude futures weakened significantly Thursday, continuing the massive sell-off on late Wednesday after the release of US stock stock data by the EIA, analysts said. At 10:36 GMT, September ICE Brent traded at $74.55/barrel, down 79 cents. The NYMEX WTI and ICE WTI futures for the same month traded 76 cents lower at $75.77/b.

•Immediately after the release of the US stock data, which showed a larger than expected draw in US crude stocks of 6.5 million barrels, the September NYMEX WTI contract rallied to a new all-time high of $78.77/b, breaching the previous all-time high set in July 2006. But product stock builds, amid the highest level of refinery inputs in almost two years, weighed heavily and took control of the complex, dragging crude futures down around $2/b later in the day. In addition, there was a bout of profit-taking once the new all-time high had been reached, according to analysts.

•Middle East crude contracts remained quiet. The ICE Dubai contract for October has not traded throughout the current trading session, after settling on Wednesday at $69.72/b. The October DME Oman contract was at $69.85/b, down 45 cents, with 256 lots currently traded.

Updated: Aug 2, 2007