Oil futures: Prices lower after huge builds in US product inventoriesQuantum Commodity Intelligence – Crude oil futures Thursday were trading lower following another choppy session, as markets rowed back from earlier highs after US data revealed a sharp build in reserves of refined products. For gasoline, it was the highest weekly build in three decades, although oil prices were already off from the day's highs prior to the EIA data release. Oil prices had sparked into life on Wednesday following reports that Libya's 300,000 bpd El Sharara field was shut following renewed protests that started the previous day. But so far the decision to divert away from the Red Sea has not had a huge impact on oil prices, with benchmarks broadly drifting lower since the latest wave of attacks started prior to the holiday season. InventoriesEarlier in the session, crude prices were neutral after data from the American Petroleum Institute revealed that crude inventories tumbled by 7.4 million barrels last week, beating forecasts for a drop of 3 million barrels.
