Oil slips to USD 81.33 a barrel

Oil prices extended losses in Asia on Wednesday ahead of a report on energy demand.

Oil prices extended losses in Asian trade on Wednesday ahead of a closely watched report on energy demand in the United States,the world’s biggest energy consumer.

New York’s main contract,light sweet crude for April delivery,dropped 16 cents to USD 81.33 a barrel.

London’s Brent North Sea crude for April delivery was down 20 cents to USD 79.71 a barrel.

Analysts said investors were waiting for signs of firmer demand in the United States after an industry report showed a surprise build-up of crude stocks.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) said Tuesday crude stockpiles for the week ended March 5 rose 6.5 million barrels. Analysts polled by Platts had anticipated an increase of 2.1 million barrels.

“The API reported quite bearish results yesterday. The crude build-up was larger than expected,” said Serene Lim,a Singapore-based oil analyst with the ANZ bank.

She said focus will now be on a report by the US Department of Energy on oil inventories to be released later Wednesday for indications on energy demand in the United States.

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Crude prices have also been under pressure by a stronger greenback,which makes dollar-priced oil more expensive,analysts said.

The dollar was steady in the morning as traders took to the sidelines ahead of US and Chinese economic reports.