Crude oil futures slip on rising US inventories

New Delhi, Nov 19 (PTI) Crude oil futures on Wednesday fell Rs 10 to Rs 5,366 per barrel as renewed supply from Russia and rising US inventories weighed on investor sentiment.

On the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), crude oil futures for December delivery slipped by Rs 10, or 0.19 per cent, to Rs 5,366 per barrel in a business turnover of 11,935 lots.

Similarly, the January 2026 contract dipped Rs 3, or 0.06 per cent, to Rs 5,369 a barrel in 1,150 lots.

"Crude oil was highly volatile due to sanctions on Russian oil and the US President Donald Trump's threat to impose a 500 per cent tariff on countries importing Russian crude," Rahul Kalantri, Vice President of Commodities at Mehta Equities, said.

In the international markets, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil for December delivery was trading 0.12 per cent lower at USD 60.67 per barrel, while Brent Crude for the January 2026 contract dipped 0.20 per cent to USD 64.75 a barrel.

Brokerage firm Kotak Securities, in a market note, said crude oil prices slipped to USD 60.5 per barrel as traders turned cautious ahead of the Energy Information Administration (EIA) report after the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a large build in US crude inventories, showing an increase of 4.4 million barrels for the week ending November 14.

The Energy Information Administration (EIA), an independent agency under the US Department of Energy, publishes weekly inventory data tracking the volume of commercial crude oil held by US firms, offering a key gauge of market balance.

"Crude oil prices on Tuesday closed over 1 per cent higher near USD 61 per barrel, on speculation that the European Union may tighten sanctions on Russia after its top diplomat indicated stronger restrictions, following an explosion in Poland," Kotak Securities said. PTI HG HG BAL BAL