Oil falls after surprise rise in U.S. crude inventories

TOKYO, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell on Wednesday
after an industry group reported a rise in U.S. crude
inventories against expectations for a decline, adding to
worries about demand that led to a steep selloff earlier in the
week.
Brent crude LCOc1 was trading down 21 cents, or 0.5%, at
$41.51 a barrel by 0055 GMT, after gaining 28 cents on Tuesday,
while U.S. crude CLc1 slipped 23 cents, or 0.6, to $39.57.
Both contracts fell more than 4% on Monday, the most in two
weeks.
Surging cases of coronavirus infections in countries
including France and Spain, along with the likelihood of more
restrictions in Britain have renewed worries about fuel demand,
just as more supply may come onto the market from Libya.
In the United States, where the death toll from COVID-19 has
passed 200,000, the world's highest, crude oil inventories rose
by 691,000 barrels in the week to Sept. 18, according to
industry data, compared with analysts' forecasts for a drop of
2.3 million barrels. Gasoline stocks fell by nearly 7.7 million barrels, nearly 8
times expectations suggesting some demand for fuel in the
world's biggest oil consuming nation.
Still, this year, "world oil demand will be down by more
than 10% on the year to around 90 million barrels per day (bpd)
due to the COVID-19 crisis," Eurasia Group said in a note.
"This will mark the biggest demand shock in industry
history," it said.
Official data is due out later on Wednesday. EIA/S
In Libya, the National Oil Company expects oil output to
rise to more than a quarter of a million barrels per day (bpd)
by next week, it said on Tuesday.
The NOC said it was restarting exports from the Zueitinia
oil terminal after checking the security situation at the port
and fields that pipe crude there. An escalation in the country's conflict led to a blockade of
facilities, which is now easing, although analysts say they
don't expect Libya to reach the 1.2 million bpd of production it
was pumping previously.