U.S. businesses maintained a fairly solid pace of inventory investment in September amid rising sales, government data showed on Wednesday.
U.S. retail sales fell for the first time in seven months in October as motor vehicle purchases and spending on hobbies dropped, pointing to slowing demand at the start of the fourth quarter that further strengthened expectations the Federal Reserve is done hiking interest rates.
Asian stock markets struggled for momentum on Thursday, after heavy gains this week, as expectations for a pause in Fed policy tightening remained intact despite U.S. data pointing to strength in parts of the economy.
Oil prices dropped on Thursday, extending losses from the previous session, as signals of higher supply from the United States met worries about lackluster energy demand from Asia.
Brent futures fell 28 cents to $80.90 a barrel by 0001 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) lost 31 cents to $76.35 a barrel.
Both benchmarks fell over 1.5% in the prior session.
WTI's front-month contract was also lower than the second month, a structure known as contango, showing investors expect prices to increase ahead. The front month's discount to the second month traded at minus 15 cents on Wednesday, the widest discount since July.
U.S. crude stocks rose by 3.6 million barrels last week to 421.9 million barrels, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), far exceeding analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.8 million-barrel rise. [EIA/S]
U.S. crude production held steady at a record 13.2 million barrels per day (bpd).
Meanwhile in Asia, China's oil refinery throughput eased in October from the previous month's highs as industrial fuel demand weakened and refining margins narrowed. Still, its economic activity perked up in October as industrial output increased at a faster pace and retail sales growth beat expectations.
Source: Investing
The dollar held its ground early on Thursday after a volatile two days that saw sharp declines followed by a rebound as traders took incoming economic data as signalling the Federal Reserve will wait longer before cutting interest rates.
Asian stocks leapt while the dollar was nursing its heaviest losses in a year on Wednesday, as steady U.S. inflation figures boosted investor confidence that the Federal Reserve was done hiking interest rates and may start cutting early next year.