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UPDATE 2-Looming gasoline glut pulls down global crude oil prices

Published 05/04/2016, 02:56 pm
Updated 05/04/2016, 03:00 pm
© Reuters. UPDATE 2-Looming gasoline glut pulls down global crude oil prices
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* U.S. gasoline demand dips for the first time in 14 months

* Strong gasoline demand has helped support struggling crude

* Traders forced to store unwanted gasoline on tankers in Asia

* Storage glut could pull prices back to recent lows -BNP Paribas

* Production freeze would do little to address crude glut -FGE (Adds comment, detail, updates prices)

By Henning Gloystein

SINGAPORE, April 5 (Reuters) - Oil prices on Tuesday extended losses from the previous two sessions on weakening demand for gasoline and on concerns the global crude glut could persist for some time.

Front month U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were trading at $35.54 per barrel at 0454 GMT, down 16 cents from their last settlement.

International Brent futures LCOc1 were down 11 cents at $37.58 a barrel.

Both WTI and Brent extended their declines for a third session as investors doubted that producers will be able to rein in global overproduction that has seen crude prices tumble by as much as 70 percent since mid-2014.

Growth in gasoline use has been one of the strongest pillars supporting demand across the fuel complex in both North America and Asia, largely credited for preventing oil prices from tumbling even further than they have.

Tuesday's declines came after U.S. gasoline demand during January fell for the first time in 14 months, while overall U.S. oil demand fell 1 percent that month from a year ago. in Asia, traders have stored excess gasoline on tankers as onshore storage facilities in Singapore and Malaysia are filled to the rims, although some traders said this was only a temporary measure rather than a sign of a longer term gasoline glut for the region. say crude prices could fall lower again soon, though, as the emerging gasoline glut potentially adds to a global overhang in crude output that sees more than 1 million barrels of oil produced in excess of demand every day.

"Global oil balances will witness sizeable implied inventory builds in H1'16, suggesting that the price of oil can easily revisit the lows seen earlier this year," French bank BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) said in a note to clients.

To address the crude overhang, major producers like Saudi Arabia and Russia have proposed a freeze in output at January levels, when both pumped at or near record levels, a move analysts have dismissed as ineffective.

"Only a feeble mind sees a freeze in production as good news. It is the worst news as it guarantees over-production and rising inventories," consultancy FGE said on Tuesday in its monthly oil report. Crude prices could see a downward correction to between $25 and $35 per barrel in the second quarter, FGE said.

Traders have increased their bets on more price falls to come, with the U.S.-based Schork Report saying that this week's trade data release showed "the first time speculative shorts rose, and net speculative longs fell, since the start of the (most recent price) rally in early February."

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