Oil Rises After Chinese GDP Surprises at 7.3% in Q3
West Texas Intermediate and Brent crudes advanced after Chinese economic growth exceeded analysts’ estimates, signaling stronger fuel demand in the world’s second-biggest oil consuming country.
Futures rose as much as 1.5 percent in New York and 1.2 percent in London. China’s gross domestic product rose 7.3 percent in the July-September period from a year earlier, the statistics bureau said today in Beijing. While that exceeded the 7.2 percent median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of analysts, it was also the slowest expansion since the first quarter of 2009. European stocks and U.S. equity-index futures climbed.
“We’re up because the Chinese data was better than expected,” Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at the Price Futures Group in Chicago, said by phone. “The stock market is on fire this morning, which is also giving oil a boost. The dour mood we saw last week appears to have lifted.”
WTI for November delivery, which expires today, gained $1.17, or 1.4 percent, to $83.88 a barrel at 9:07 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The more-active December contract rose $1.17 to $83.08. The volume of all futures traded was 10 percent below the 100-day average for the time of day.
Brent for December settlement increased 82 cents, or 1 percent, to $86.22 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. Volume was 15 percent higher than the 100-day average. Futures have decreased 23 percent this year. The European benchmark crude traded at $3.14 to WTI for December delivery, down from $3.49 at yesterday’s close.
November gasoline futures climbed 1.53 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $2.2155 a gallon on the Nymex. Futures touched $2.1347 on Oct. 16, the lowest level since Nov. 24, 2010.
Regular gasoline at U.S. pumps fell to the lowest level since January 2011. The average retail price fell 0.6 cents to $3.094 a gallon yesterday, according to Heathrow, Florida-based AAA, the nation’s biggest motoring group.
Source: Bloomberg- Oil Rises After Chinese GDP Surprises at 7.3% in Q3
