Oil prices fall slightly after IEA report

PanARMENIAN.Net - The price of oil fell slightly Friday, July 12, extending losses below $105 a barrel after a report from the International Energy Agency said supplies would exceed an expected rise in demand next year, The Associated Press reports.

Benchmark crude for August delivery was down 19 cents at $104.72 a barrel at early afternoon Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.61 to close at $104.91 on Thursday.

Oil had shot higher in recent days on a dramatic drop in U.S. supplies of oil and gasoline but its rise to a 16-month high was halted by the IEA's forecast Thursday.

The agency expects supply growth to result in an additional 1.3 million barrels of oil a day in 2014, while global demand is forecast to grow by 1.2 million barrels a day next year.

"Non-OPEC supply growth looks on track to hit a 20-year record next year," the IEA said in its monthly oil market report. "While demand growth is also forecast to pick up momentum ... this will still fall short of forecast non-OPEC supply growth."

Brent crude was down 10 cents at $106.94 on the ICE Futures exchange in London.