Brent crude oil At 0029 GMT, futures were up 17 cents, or 0.2 percent, at $79.93 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 23 cents, or 0.3 percent, at $77.21 a barrel.
Both benchmarks fell more than 1% on Wednesday after U.S. crude inventories unexpectedly rose and concerns about a broader conflict in the Middle East eased.
Consumer prices in the United States rose moderately in July and the annual increase in inflation slowed to below 3% for the first time in nearly three and a half years, reinforcing expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates next month.
“We saw a correction in Asian trade as the oil market was oversold on Wednesday,” said Yuki Takashima, an economist at Nomura Securities, adding that investors are betting that the Fed could start cutting rates as early as next month. “Still, oil prices are expected to remain under pressure going forward as concerns persist that global demand, especially in China, will be sluggish,” Takashima said, predicting that WTI will head toward the $72 mark by early August. U.S. crude stockpiles rose by 1.4 million barrels in the week ended Aug. 9, compared with estimates for a 2.2 million barrel draw, rising for the first time since late June, data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed on Wednesday. [EIA/S] Earlier this week, the International Energy Agency cut its estimate for oil demand growth for 2025, citing the impact of a weakening Chinese economy on consumption. This came after OPEC lowered expected demand for 2024 for similar reasons.
Globally, jet fuel demand is also set to decline as slowing consumer spending hits travel budgets, a shift that could weigh on oil prices in coming months.
To offset demand concerns and support oil prices, investors remain nervous about Iran’s possible response Last month, three senior Iranian officials said only a ceasefire agreement in Gaza would prevent Iran from retaliating directly against Israel for the killing of the leader of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
Hamas said on Wednesday it would not take part in a new round of Gaza ceasefire talks scheduled for Thursday in Qatar, dampening hopes of a negotiated truce.
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