LONDON, Nov 24 (AFP) - Oil prices eased back Wednesday after US government inventory data revealed a build in distillate stockpiles, the first for 10 weeks.
New York's main oil contract, light sweet crude for January delivery, eased 34 cents to 48.60 dollars a barrel at about 1700 GMT.
In London Brent North Sea crude oil for January lost 20 cents to 44.25 dollars a barrel.
The Department of Energy reported that distillate stockpiles, including crucial heating oil inventories, rose one million barrels to 115.6 million in the week ending November 19, breaking a nine-week losing streak.
The American Petroleum Institute, a private trade association, reported an even larger build of 1.82 million barrels to 117.6 million.
On crude oil stockpiles, the US government data showed a rise of 100,000 barrels to 292.4 million barrels, but the API reported a decline of 1.22 million barrels to 293.22 million.
Both reported small falls in heating oil stocks: 200,000 to 48.9 million according to the Department of Energy and 134,000 to 50.61 million according to the API.
US heating oil stocks, which are about 16 percent lower than a year ago, continue to cause concerns over a possible supply crunch should the northern hemisphere winter turn out to be colder than expected.
"The market is mainly reacting to the product build that the API showed, which were larger builds than the DoE's," said Tony Machacek, a broker with Base Financial.
"Compared to the last few years, heating oil stocks are a little bit down," he noted.
But markets could also be reacting to price action seen on Tuesday, when crude prices jumped to 50.25 dollars, its highest level since November 4, during New York trading before shedding about one dollar in the last half hour of deals, Machacek said.
"It confirmed the bearish sentiment from the last days. People are generally reluctant to buy at the moment," he added.
Informa Global Markets analyst Peter Luxton said US trading was winding down ahead of the Thanksgiving public holiday on Thursday, with the oil market also shut on Friday.
"There will be some position squaring as we head into the long weekend, with some buying in the dips (in electronic deals) over the next four days," he said.
Oil prices have fallen by about 16 percent in New York from all-time highs seen last month, but remain up 44 percent so far this year.
Although fears of energy shortages in the United States and Europe over the coming winter have eased, markets remain vulnerable to price spikes in the event of particularly cold weather, analysts said.
Analysts said prices are drawing support from expectations that the OPEC cartel will soon reduce its output, after increasing production to close to full capacity in recent months in response to record-high prices.
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries ministers are due to meet next in Cairo on December 10.
11/24/2004 17:58 GMT - AFP