Oil prices rise on weaker dollar, likely drawdown in U.S. stocks

* Libya's NOC declares force majeure on Hariga port
* Saudi crude exports drop to eight-month low in Feb
* Coming up: API inventory data at 2030 GMT

By Jessica Jaganathan
SINGAPORE, April 20 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Tuesday
as a weaker U.S. dollar supported commodities and on
expectations that crude inventories fell in the United States,
the world's biggest oil user, though rising coronavirus cases in
Asia capped gains.
Brent crude LCOc1 futures for June delivery rose by 29
cents, or 0.4%, to $67.33 a barrel at 0157 GMT.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 futures for
May delivery, which expire on Tuesday, were up 19 cents, or
0.3%, to $63.57 barrel. The more-active June contract was at
$63.71, up 0.4%, or 28 cents.
Buyers using other currencies pay less for
dollar-denominated oil when the greenback weakens.
"U.S. dollar weakness continues to offer support to the
commodities complex ... despite concerns over oil demand in
certain regions," ING Economics said in a note.
The dollar index =USD slumped to a six-week low against
other major currencies on Monday following a plunge in U.S.
Treasury yields last week and remained near the low at 91.055 on
Tuesday. Also supporting prices, U.S. crude oil and distillate
stockpiles were expected to have dropped last week, while
gasoline inventories likely rose, a preliminary Reuters poll
showed on Monday. The poll was conducted ahead of reports from industry group
American Petroleum Institute (API) due on Tuesday and the Energy
Information Administration (EIA), the statistical arm of the
U.S. Department of Energy, on Wednesday.
Libya's National Oil Corp (NOC) declared force majeure on
Monday on exports from the port of Hariga and said it could
extend the measure to other facilities because of a budget
dispute with the country's central bank. The disruption could cut Libya's oil output by 280,000
barrels per day (bpd), knocking production below 1 million bpd
for the first time since October, ING said.
Saudi Arabia's crude oil exports fell to their lowest in
eight months in February, the Joint Organisations Data
Initiative (JODI) said on Monday, illustrating the world's
biggest oil exporter's commitment to its voluntarily output cap
to support oil prices. However, surging COVID-19 cases in India, the world's
third-biggest oil importer and consumer, dampened optimism for a
sustained recovery in global fuel demand.