Oil edges lower after jump in U.S. stockpiles, vaccine hopes capping losses

* U.S. oil stocks rise 1.14 mln bbls vs forecasts of draw
-API
* Positive news on COVID-19 vaccine lifts investors hopes
* U.S. crude output in 2021 to fall less than forecast -EIA

By Yuka Obayashi
TOKYO, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Oil prices edged lower on Wednesday
on concerns over an unexpected jump in U.S. oil inventories last
week, but positive news on COVID-19 vaccines lifted investors
hopes for a recovery in fuel demand, capping losses.
Brent crude LCOc1 futures slipped 13 cents, or 0.3%, to
$48.71 a barrel by 0151 GMT, having gained 5 cents the previous
day. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1
dropped 15 cents, or 0.3%, to $45.45, after shedding 16 cents on
Tuesday.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) said on Tuesday that
U.S. crude oil, gasoline and distillate stocks rose sharply last
week, with crude stocks jumping by 1.14 million barrels,
contrary to analyst forecasts in a Reuters poll for a draw of
1.42 million barrels. API/S
Official weekly oil data from the U.S. Energy Information
Administration (EIA) is due on Wednesday. EIA/S
"The recent rally looks to be overdone from a fundamental
point of view, given rising oil output in Libya and the United
States with weaker fuel demand across the globe," said Kazuhiko
Saito, chief analyst at Fujitomi Co.
"But the bullish tone is likely to continue amid hopes the
pandemic can be brought under control with vaccines next year."
Britain began mass-vaccinating its people on Tuesday in a
global drive that poses one of the biggest logistical challenges
in peacetime history.
Pfizer PFE.N cleared another hurdle on Tuesday when the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration released documents that raised
no new red flags over the safety or efficacy of the vaccine it
developed with Germany's BioNTech 22UAy.DE . The vaccine news helped offset fears from a sharp rise in
coronavirus cases globally that has led to a string of renewed
lockdowns, including strict measures in California, Germany and
South Korea.
Hedge fund managers were substantial buyers of petroleum
futures and options last week for the fourth week in a row, a
sign of increasing confidence that coronavirus vaccines will
drive a recovery in oil consumption next year.
The EIA said on Tuesday that U.S. crude oil production is
expected to slide next year by 240,000 barrels per day (bpd) to
11.10 million bpd, a smaller decline compared to a previous
forecast for a slide of 290,000 bpd.