Crude Oil Drifts Lower
Updated from 1:42 p.m. EST
Crude oil fell from a four-month high Tuesday, as the recent rally ran into some headwinds.
The April futures contract closed 7 cents lower at $51.68 in Nymex floor trading, having traded below $51 earlier in the session. Prices edged higher yesterday, driven by renewed supply concerns.
Prices are back to more than $50 for the first time since late October amid unseasonably cold weather in the U.S. and worries about OPEC's production plans. OPEC next meets on March 16 in Iran.
The latest signs from the oil cartel are that it does not intend to cut production for a second time this year. OPEC trimmed output by 1 million barrels a day, effective Jan. 1. The cartel left output unchanged at its most recent meeting.
The market is also keeping an eye on heating oil supplies. Demand for heating oil is usually a diminishing factor for the market at this time of year, but colder-than-normal weather has extended the peak heating season.
The government releases its closely watched weekly inventory data Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. EST.
Prices hit a record high of more than $55 in late October but then fell by as much as 25% before moving back up.