Oil dips ahead of US inventory data

Oil drilling rigs

Oil prices eased on Wednesday, although Brent continued to hold above the $75-mark, ahead of data on US crude inventories and amid developments related to the Omicron coronavirus variant.

The international benchmark Brent crude was trading down 0.1% at $75.35 per barrel (bbl), at 9.00 am Makkah time.

WTI crude fell 0.3% to $71.85/bbl.

"Investors are still not fully optimistic and are taking a wait-and-see approach until they learn about Omicron's full impact," Reuters reported, citing Hiroyuki Kikukawa, General Manager of Research at Nissan Securities.

Meanwhile, American Petroleum Institute data revealed that oil inventories in the United States fell by 3.1 million barrels in the week ended Dec. 3.

The US Energy Information Administration’s report on US stockpiles is due later today.