Oil erases gains, but Brent holds above $90

Oil drilling rigs

Oil futures wiped off their early gains today, April 16, as markets absorbed developments in the Middle East, and in light of weak data on industrial production from two of the largest economies in the world.

Brent crude futures for June delivery fell 0.1%, or 8 cents, to close at $90.02 per barrel, after touching an intraday high of $90.84.

WTI crude for May delivery settled at $85.36 per barrel, after touching $86.18.

Economic data showed that Chinese industrial production grew by 4.5% on an annual basis in March, which is much lower than the 7% growth in the period from January to February combined and less than market expectations of 5.4%.

Industrial production in America was stable on an annual basis in March, after a revised 0.3% decline in February.

The American Petroleum Institute's report on oil inventories is expected to be issued later today, and the US Energy Information Administration is scheduled to issue official inventory data on April 17, amid expectations that crude inventories will rise by 1.6 million barrels.