WTI & Brent both trade ~$0.15 lower at..........>

OIL: WTI & Brent both trade ~$0.15 lower at writing, with risk assets largely

struggling in Asia-Pacific hours. This comes after the benchmarks settled lower

on Wednesday, in the wake of the latest round of API & DoE inventory data, which

revealed surprise builds in headline crude stocks, with stocks at Cushing also

moving higher. That being said, the latest DoE data revealed larger than

expected drawdowns in distillate and gasoline stocks, with refinery utilisation

some 2.3% lower and overall U.S. production levels flat in W/W terms (holding

firm at record levels).

- Wednesday saw reports suggest that Russia's crude production stood at 11.3mn

bpd during the month so far). Also on the supply front, Iraq noted that exports

from its southern area had resumed, following bad weather, while Libya suggested

that it could produce as much as 1.4mn bpd of crude if the country managed to

attain political stability. Nigeria's oil ministry revealed that the country's

crude production rose to 1.8mn bpd in February, up from 1.65mn bpd in January.

- Finally, reports suggested that delays around the Houston Shipping Channel may

be evident over the next 3-5 days after a partial re-open on Wednesday.