Oil edges down to $103/bbl, supply worry eases
NYMEX crude for August delivery was down 16 cents at USD 102.98 a barrel by 0018 GMT, after settling down 8 cents at USD 103.14 on Monday. It touched a 14-month high of USD 104.12 on Monday.
US crude futures retreated to just below USD 103 a barrel on Tuesday, pressured by the return of a Libyan oilfield and Iraqi pipeline that eased concerns about global oil supplies.
Fundamentals
NYMEX crude for August delivery was down 16 cents at USD 102.98 a barrel by 0018 GMT, after settling down 8 cents at USD 103.14 on Monday. It touched a 14-month high of USD 104.12 on Monday.
London Brent crude for August delivery was down 34 cents at USD 107.09 a barrel, after settling down 29 cents.
Libya's major Sharara oilfield will resume operations after an agreement was reached with the armed group that shut it down last month, a senior Libyan oil source said on Monday.
A pipeline from Iraq to the Turkish port of Ceyhan will also resume operations in two to three days following an interruption caused by a leak, two sources in Iraq's state-run North Oil Company (NOC) said on Monday.
Clashes in Egypt that left at least 51 people dead heightened geopolitical risk, but there has been no impact to ports and shipping through the Suez Canal.
Egypt will hold new parliamentary elections once amendments to its suspended constitution are approved in a referendum, the interim head of state decreed on Monday, setting out a time frame that could see a legislative vote in about six months.
US commercial crude oil stocks likely fell by 3.3 million barrels last week, a Reuters poll showed on Monday. Distillate stocks likely rose by 1.3 million barrels, while gasoline stocks were seen up 1.2 million barrels.
Market News
The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 0.53 percent on Monday, edging closer to its all-time high set in May.
The dollar paused in its rally as investors bought beaten-down currencies such as the Australian dollar on Tuesday, although its broad uptrend is seen intact as the market tries to position for when the US Federal Reserve will start to slow its stimulus.
