(Bloomberg) — Oil declined at the open in Asia on a risk-off tone in wider financial markets and more signs of robust global supply.
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West Texas Intermediate dropped 1.1% to trade below $78 a barrel, on track to snap four straight days of gains. Brent futures closed little changed near $83. The early move lower is backed by higher-than-usual volumes, with 34,500 lots of WTI changing hands within the session’s first hour.
Stocks in Asia are poised to fall in early Friday trading, which is likely to weigh on risk assets such as oil. There was also some WTI options contracts traded, which is unusual during early-session moves.
Oil has steadily declined since early April, in part due to concerns over demand, although attacks on ships near Yemen are starting to ramp up again. More supply from the US — already the world’s biggest producer — has flooded into the global market, further clouding the outlook for crude.
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