Oil steadies as U.S. crude draw offset by Russian supplies, stronger dollar By Reuters

By Laila Kearney

(Reuters) – Oil steadied in early Asian trade on Thursday as a surprise draw in oil stockpiles that supported prices was offset by a smaller-than-expected cut to Russian supplies and stronger dollar.

futures were unchanged at $78.28 a barrel at 0020 GMT. West Texas Intermediate U.S. crude fell 6 cents, or 0.1%, to $72.91 a barrel.

Helping to support prices, U.S. crude oil stockpiles fell unexpectedly last week as refineries ramped up production after maintenance season and imports fell to a two-year low, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. [EIA/S]

Crude inventories fell by 7.5 million barrels in the week to March 24 to 473.7 million barrels, compared with analysts’ expectations in a Reuters poll for a 100,000-barrel rise.

Meanwhile, reports about Russian crude production falling by around 300,000 barrels a day in the first three weeks of March, less than the targeted cuts of 500,000 bpd, and strength in the U.S. dollar, erased oil price gains.

The , which generally trades inversely with oil, was 0.18% higher on Wednesday at 102.67, pulling away from the near seven-week low reached late last week.