NYMEX December crude futures down in Asia on U.S. crude stocks outlook

              Crude oil prices weakened in Asia on Thursday as some doubt is cast ahead of a weekly stocks report later in the day from the U.S. Energy Information Administration that is expected to show a drop in stocks to 994 million barrels from 1.577 billion.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in December traded at USD93.71, down 0.19%, in a range of 93.45 - 93.78.

Some traders expect that more refiners than estimated have curbed their crude processing amid seasonal maintenance work and that could bring in the data more bearish than forecast. The American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, overnight said crude oil stocks rose 600,000 barrels in the week.

The commodity hit a session low of USD92.93 and a high of USD94.51 overnight.

The EIA data comes out a day later than usual because of the Veterans Day holiday on Monday. Total U.S. crude oil inventories stood at 385.4 million barrels as of last week, the highest since June, according to EIA

Recent jobs and economic growth reports have surprised on the upside in recent days, painting a picture of a more robust U.S. economy, one that will demand more fuel and energy going forward.

Brent crude futures for December on the ICE climbed to USD107.12 a barrel ahead of expiration on Thursday. - investing.com