The price of Brent crude fell to $102 a barrel today, as data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) revealed an increase in US fuel stocks.
Reuters reported that Brent crude for October delivery declined 60 cents to $102.17 a barrel while US crude fell 69 cents to settle at $94.85 a barrel.
The price of crude was under pressure from a strong dollar, which increased 0.27% against a host of currencies on Tuesday.
Brent traded at a 16-month low on Tuesday but recovered after the strong manufacturing activity in the US.
Data from API has revealed that gasoline stocks increased by 362,000 barrels last week and distillate fuels stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, grew by 385,000 barrels.
US crude inventories declined only 545,000 barrels to 361 million last week as refinery capacity utilisation dropped 0.5% to 93.2%.
The worldwide oil demand has been running below supply over the last few months, after a supply glut in West African, Asian and Atlantic markets.
Political tensions in important oil-producing regions of the Middle East, North Africa, and Russia represent potential support to oil prices, despite the supply glut in West African, Asian and Atlantic markets.
CMC Markets chief analyst Ric Spooner was quoted by Reuters as saying: "The market has now stripped out most of the geopolitical risk premium, which makes it vulnerable to sudden changes in the world’s hotspots."
