Oil struggled in Asia hours, Brent & WTI last...>

OIL: Oil struggled in Asia hours, Brent & WTI last ~$0.60 below their respective

settlement levels, with risk sentiment hampered by Coronavirus worry. This came

after crude relented early gains on Wednesday, as the major benchmarks settled

lower. The weekly DoE inventory report revealed a larger than expected build in

headline crude stocks (at odds with the surprise drawdown seen in the API

estimate). Elsewhere, DoE gasoline stocks revealed a smaller than expected

build, with distillate stocks revealing a larger than expected drawdown. Stocks

at Cushing edged higher, with refinery run rates falling.

- The aforementioned API inventory estimate helped put a modest bid into the

space ahead of European hours on Wednesday, before a spike to highs on the back

of the Yemeni Houthis declaring a missile attack on Saudi crude facilities.

However, the accuracy of the attack was played down, as Saudi officials

suggested that no serious damage was incurred, so crude eased pre-DoE.

- On the OPEC+ front, the Algerian Energy Min suggested that the group's March

meeting could be rolled forward into February. Meanwhile, Platts noted that OPEC

is preparing a report re: the impact of the Coronavirus on crude markets.