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Crude oil slips on China, US reports

13 January 2010 07:14 (UTC +04:00)

Baku- APA-Economics. Oil declined for a third a day after China raised bank reserve requirements to curb a credit boom and prevent the economy from overheating, and as an industry report showed an increase in U.S. crude and distillate stockpiles, Bloomberg reports.
Oil fell 2.1 percent yesterday as China, the second-largest energy consuming nation, increased the proportion of deposits banks must set aside for the first time since 2008. Supplies of distillate fuel, a category that includes heating oil and diesel, rose 3.6 million barrels last week, a report from the American Petroleum Institute showed yesterday.
Crude oil for February delivery dropped as much as $1.01, or 1.3 percent, to $79.78 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was at $79.89 at 11:48 a.m. Singapore time. Yesterday, the contract fell $1.73 to settle at $80.79, the biggest one-day decline since Dec. 9.
Brent crude for February settlement fell as much as 88 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $78.42 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. It was at $78.50 a barrel at 11:49 a.m. in Singapore. Yesterday it dropped $1.67, or 2.1 percent, to $79.30 a barrel, declining for a fourth day.