Oil loses another 1% in Asia on oversupply concerns

Oil prices at both the sides of the Atlantic dropped another 1% following a 3% loss on Monday on oversupply concerns.

At the time of writing, WTI oil was down 73 cents or 1.54% at $46.68/barrel. Brent oil was down 60 cents or 1.22% at $48.56/barrel.

Supply unleashed

Concerns of excess supply came to the fore on reports China’s July diesel and gasoline exports rose 181.8% and 145.2% respectively. In the United States, BP Plc's 413,500 barrel per day refinery in Whiting, Indiana, returned to normal production for the first time since late July.

There are also reports that Iraq plans this week to increase exports of Kirkuk crude by 150,000 bpd from its northern fields. Meanwhile, Nigerian rebels have called for a ceasefire as well.

No wonder oil is down 4% this week. The next fundamental trigger comes from weekly inventory report from American Petroleum Institute (API) and government data.