Surging fuel demand in China in the wake of the reopening and rising oil stockpiles in the US temper fluctuations in oil prices Thursday.

A barrel of European benchmark crude Brent goes for USD 85.21 Thursday morning against USD 84.37 Wednesday afternoon. US counterpart West Texas Intermediate trades concurrently for USD 78.53 against USD 77.93 Wednesday morning.

”US crude oil inventories have continued to exceed expectations, which to some extent erodes the bullish sentiments brought from China’s demand recovery hopes,” says a Haitong Futures analyst, according to Reuters.

Last week US oil stockpiles rose to the highest level since June 2021, aided by an increase in production, the Energy Information Administration noted on Wednesday. Gasoline inventories rose as well, while demand remained low.

Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve has warned of additional interest rate hikes to cool inflation at the same time as growing demand in China keeps oil prices steady.

According to a note from analysts at ANZ Bank, the Chinese reopening could potentially push global demand to 2.1 million barrels per day in the coming year, Reuters reports. 

Elsewhere in the commodities market, a troy ounce of gold trades for USD 1,878.40 against USD 1,874.02 Wednesday afternoon.