Brent Slips Below $110 On Supply Increase

Brent crude oil fell below $110 on Tuesday as supply worries eased and investors turned their attention to demand. The commodity traded at $109.98 at 6:10 GMT, near a one month low as tension in both Iraq and Libya eased.

The conflict in Iraq showed no signs of letting up as the nation’s parliament postponed its next meeting for five weeks, leaving Iraq without the cohesive government that most believe is needed to end the fighting. However, the risk of a full on civil war seems to have dissipated as fighting between Islamic militants and government forces has been confined to the north. With the majority of Iraqi oil coming out of the nation’s southern oilfields, most believe supply interruption worries are unfounded at this point.

Brent was also under pressure as Libya continued to work towards reopening its two largest oilfields after protestors holding the ports agreed to return control to the government. The ports have been out of use for nearly a year, and will likely need to undergo extensive maintenance before returning to their normal capacity.

CNBCreported that National Oil Corp announced on Monday that Libya is currently exporting 326,000 barrels per day, with the nation’s western El Sharara complex still shut down due to protests.

Moving forward investors will be anticipating oil inventory data from the US for an idea of the nation’s appetite in the wake of an impressive job market rebound. Most expect to see that the nation’s inventories fell last week with the summer driving season in full swing.