Commodity News
HeadLine : Oil prices retreat as US crude build, rate cut concerns come to the fore
Date : Apr 22 2024
Oil prices fell at Asia's open on Monday, dragged down by a renewed focus on market fundamentals, as Israel and Iran played down the risks of an escalation of hostilities in the Middle East after Israel's apparently small strike on Iran.U.S Crude inventories rose by 2.7 million barrels, Energy Information Administration data showed last week. The increase was nearly double analysts' expectations of a 1.4 million barrel rise.On Saturday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed an aid package for Ukraine and Israel containing measures that would let the federal government expand sanctions against Iran and its oil production. But markets shrugged off the news as the impact of the measures, if passed, would depend on how they are interpreted and implemented.On Saturday, a blast at an Iraqi military base killed a member of a security force that includes Iran-backed groups. The force commander said it was an attack while the army said it was investigating.Separately, on Sunday, Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah said it downed an Israeli drone that was on a combat mission in southern Lebanon.Israeli forces and Lebanon's armed group Hezbollah have been exchanging fire for over six months in parallel to the Gaza war, fuelling concerns about further escalation.


Source: Reuters 
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