* Cushing inventories rise to fresh record - Genscape
* Brent premium over WTI tops $6 first time in 15 months
* U.S. jobless claims fall, fail to dent bearish outlook
* Coming up: June Brent crude expiring on Friday
(Updates with settlement prices, market activity, details)
By Gene Ramos
NEW YORK, May 13 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell on Thursday
for the third straight trading session, dragged down by
economic concerns and rising U.S. petroleum inventories.
Front-month U.S. crude <CLc1> for June delivery settled
down $1.25 to $74.40 a barrel, having earlier slid to $73.62,
the lowest since Feb. 12. U.S. crude prices have fallen in
seven of the last eight sessions.
June's discount to July U.S. crude <CLN0>, widened in early
trading due to rising inventories at the delivery point for the
New York Mercantile Exchange's oil futures contract in Cushing,
Oklahoma.
The spread blew out to nearly $5 -- the highest level
since February 2009 <CL-1=R> -- in early trading, before
narrowing later as short-covering lifted the front month. At
settlement, the spread was $4.59 a barrel, up from $4.50 on
Wednesday.
"After that further widening of U.S. July crude's premium
over July, we've seen some short-covering, and that helped pare
some of June's losses," said Tom Knight, a trader at Truman
Arnold in Texarkana, Texas.
London Brent <LCOc1> fell $1.09 to settle at $80.11 a
barrel, narrowing its premium over U.S. crude to $5.71, after
hitting $6.55, highest in 15 months.
Rising global energy demand and hopes Europe can get its
debt crisis under control have supported Brent's rise for three
of the previous four sessions before it fell back on Thursday.
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
For a graphic on the front-end NYMEX crude curve:
http://link.reuters.com/veh93k
For a graphic on the premium of Brent to U.S. crude:
http://link.reuters.com/weh93k
For a technical look at the Brent-U.S. crude spread:
[]
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
CUSHING RISE
Industry data provider Genscape said crude at the storage
complex at Cushing, Oklahoma, rose by 1.2 million barrels to a
record 38.96 million barrels in the week to May 11. The build
brought inventories to what experts say is the delivery hub's
operating capacity. []
The record build has pulled down front-month U.S. crude in
recent weeks. Cushing's landlocked location tends to reflect
supply and demand in the Midwestern United States, while Brent
prices more accurately reflect oil's value to wider markets,
analysts said.
"In general, Brent is acting as a much better benchmark for
global fundamentals at the moment," Barclays Capital analyst
Amrita Sen said.
The latest U.S. economic data failed to quell worries about
the pace of the recovery.
New unemployment benefit claims fell slightly less than
expected but the number of people still drawing benefits rose
unexpectedly. []
Crude prices were further pressured by a drop on Wall
Street due to the lackluster report on jobless claims and
concerns about austerity measures in Europe. [] [] []
Total U.S. crude inventories were up by 1.9 million barrels
in the week to May 11, more than expected, data from the U.S.
Energy Information Administration showed on Wednesday. []
U.S. gasoline inventories unexpectedly dropped by 2.8
million barrels, the EIA said.
But, after gaining on Wednesday, U.S. gasoline eased almost
1 percent on Thursday to close at $2.1951 a gallon. Its crack
spread over crude -- refiners' profits per barrel -- rose to
$17.79 at settlement, from $17.19 on Wednesday. Earlier in the
Thursday's session, the spread reached $19.22, the highest
since Feb. 12.
The euro slipped close to its lowest level in 14 months
against the dollar, on worries that harsh fiscal tightening in
Europe would lead to slower growth. []
As a results, a broad array of commodities sold off as
investors placed safe-haven bets on the dollar. []
The euro zone debt crisis roiled energy markets last week,
knocking U.S. crude from a 19-month peak of $87.15 on May 3.
With fundamentals so bearish, oil traders will next focus,
along with their Wall Street counterparts, on Friday's data on
consumer sentiment to be released at 9:55 a.m. EDT (1355 GMT).
(Additional reporting by Robert Gibbons in New York, David
Sheppard in London, Alejandro Barbajosa in Singapore; Editing
by David Gregorio and Walter Bagley)
