Prompt Brent futures flat price has seen a stronger afternoon, rising from $82.50/bbl handles at around midday to highs of $84/bbl at 16:20 GMT, before softening slightly to $83.62 at 16:55 GMT. The EIA announced a sixth consecutive crude oil stock build of 1.4mbbls, against a median estimation of +2.7mbbls. This value surpasses that reported by the API last night, which registered a build of only 0.4mbbls. Cushing storage saw another build of 700kbbls. Making headlines in news today is the suspected Houthi attack on bulk carrier True Confidence, being hit by a missile in the gulf of Aden and leading to the abandonment of the merchant vessel by the crew. US officials further reported that the attack led to fatalities of crew members on board. The front and 6-month Brent futures spreads are at $0.80/bbl and $4.12/bbl, respectively.
