Oil futures were treading water early Wednesday as investors waited to hear from the Federal Reserve. Both U.S. and global benchmarks were trading slightly higher after settling at their lowest levels in nearly six months.
Price action
-
West Texas Intermediate crude for January
CL00,
+0.41%CL.1,
+0.41%
CLF24,
+0.41%
delivery gained 28 cents, or 0.4%, to $68.87 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. -
February Brent crude
BRNG24,
+0.34%BRN00,
+0.34%,
the global benchmark, gained 21 cents, or 0.3%, to $73.45 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe. On Tuesday, Brent and WTI oil marked the lowest front-month contract settlements since June 27, according to Dow Jones Market Data. -
January gasoline
RBF24,
+0.37%
gained 0.2% to $1.98 a gallon, while January heating oil
HOF24,
+1.36%
rose by 1.2% to $2.538 a gallon on Nymex. -
Natural gas for January delivery
NGF24,
+0.82%
increased by 0.2% to $2.32 per million British thermal units.
Market drivers
Traders around the world are waiting to hear from Fed Chairman Jerome Powell on Wednesday. Not only is the central bank expected to announce its latest decision on interest rates, but it’s also due to release an updated policy statement as well as fresh economic projections.
An inflation report released in the U.S. on Tuesday helped drive oil prices lower, strategists said. Many expect Wednesday’s Fed press conference could drive trading across markets.
“Crude prices dropped sharply yesterday, and the sell-off accelerated after the release of the latest US inflation numbers,” said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation.
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