Brent oil price under $75 on US data, bank trading curbs

Brent crude oil price is trading under $75 a barrel on Friday on London’s ICE Futures exchange as talk of bank trading curbs upset speculators and US oil inventories data revealed refiners continue to cut processing.

Proposals by US President Barack Obama to cut proprietary trading at large banks sent Asian stock markets and commodities tumbling in Thurdays trading session including Brent and Light oil prices. Japan’s benchmark index lost almost 3 percent.

“Department of Energy data were bearish; refinery operating rates dropped to a historical low, a reflection of refiners’ response to poor consumer demand,” said ANZ Bank analyst Serene Lim, showing U.S. demand remains persistently weak. Lower runs were evident across most of the U.S. and analysts expect a further decline in throughput in next week’s report.

Near term perspectives for the crude oil supply side remain extremely bearish. OPEC member countries expect compliance with oil output quotas to have eroded to 58% in December and tanker tracking services suggest a 1% increase in the group’s shipments in the four weeks to Feb. 6. Meanwhile, growth of supply continues apace for the first quarter of 2010 for non-OPEC countries, most notably Russia.

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