OIL FUTURES: Crude rangebound after overnight slump on China woes; US data eyed

Crude oil futures were rangebound in midmorning trade in Asia Nov. 12, after slumping nearly 3% overnight on China demand worries, as wary investors turned their attention to OPEC's monthly report and US inventory data for price direction.

At 12:04 pm Singapore time (0404 GMT), the ICE January Brent futures contract fell 11 cents/b (0.15%) from the previous close at $71.72/b, while the NYMEX December light sweet crude contract was down 13 cents/b (0.19%) at $67.91/b.

Overnight, NYMEX December WTI settled down $2.34, or 3.32%, to $68.04/b while ICE January Brent lost $2.04, or 2.76%, to $71.83/b -- the lowest since $71.12/b on Oct. 29.

Concerns about the potential imposition of new US tariffs on China have compounded the disappointment over Beijing's recent stimulus measures, which failed to provide substantial support for the country's ongoing property-led debt crisis.

"Concerns also emerged over demand in China. Data released over the weekend showed anemic consumer inflation in October and another decline in factory gate prices," ANZ research analysts, Brian Martin and Daniel Hynes, said in a note.

Meanwhile, an appreciating US dollar has made dollar-denominated assets such as oil more expensive for consumers using foreign currencies.

The ICE US Dollar Index stood at 105.485 at 10.27 am Singapore time (0227 GMT) Nov. 12, up 0.03% on the day and 1.23% since the start of the month.

Oil reports in focus

Investors are now awaiting the release of the monthly oil market reports from OPEC Nov. 12, the International Energy Agency Nov. 14 and the Energy Information Administration Nov. 26, for further cues.

Analysts anticipate an accumulation of US oil inventories in the week ended Nov. 8, with the downtrend being further driven by a stronger US dollar.

US commercial crude stocks likely climbed 1.5 million barrels to around 429.2 million barrels in the week ended Nov. 8, analysts surveyed by S&P Global Commodity Insights said Nov. 11.

The build would put stocks 4.5% behind the five-year average of US Energy Information Administration data, in from 4.9% during the week ended Nov. 1.

"The recent bearish sentiment is in stark contrast to the days leading up to the US election, when investors were buoyed by OPEC's decision to push back an anticipated production hike amid a flare-up in the Middle East conflict," Martin and Hynes said.

Dubai swaps

Dubai crude swaps and inter-month spreads dropped in midmorning trade in Asia on Nov. 12 from the previous close.

The January Dubai swap was pegged at $70.42/b at 11 am Singapore time (0300 GMT), falling $1.99/b (2.75%) from the Nov. 11 Asian market close.

The Dec-Jan Dubai swap intermonth spread inched down 8 cents/b at 22 cents/b at 10 am over the same period, and the Jan-Feb intermonth spread is pegged at 19 cents/b, down 7 cents/b.

The January Brent/Dubai EFS was pegged at $1.41/b, falling 19 cents/b from the previous Asian close.