Good and Bad News Even Out Market, Oil Prices Stay Flat

The oil market got an unexpected boost this morning when the EIA announced decreases in crude, gasoline, and distillate stockpiles in the U.S.  Analysts had predicted stockpile increases in all three categories.  The good news did briefly drive up crude and heating oil prices on NYMEX, but optimism was short-lived.  The stockpile numbers were quickly overshadowed by the results of a survey by a private company that showed corporate layoffs hit near a seven-year high in November.

The two news stories appeared to counterbalance each other, as crude and heating oil prices closed just a fraction of a per cent off of their opening prices.

HEAT USA price experts revised earlier predictions to show no change in average heating oil prices from today to tomorrow.

HEAT USA Price Report
Evening projection (for Thursday’s average retail heating oil price per gallon): NO CHANGE