SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Oil prices fell on Wednesday as investors booked profits ahead of an update from the U.S. Federal Reserve.
Brent crude futures were down 32 cents at $87.88 a barrel at 0551 GMT, having jumped 2.2% in the previous session.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures dropped 45 cents to $85.15 per barrel, having climbed 2.8% on Tuesday.
“Some corrections have kicked in as investors wanted to adjust their positions ahead of the Fed meeting,” Reuters cited Hiroyuki Kikukawa, general manager of research at Nissan Securities, as saying.
“But downside is limited due to heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine and the threat to infrastructure in the United Arab Emirates,” he said.
He added that oil was likely to continue its upward run after the Fed update.
The U.S. federal reserve is expected to firm up plans to raise interest rates and shrink its holdings of U.S. Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities, which have swollen its balance sheet to about $9 trillion, Reuters reported.
Oil prices hit seven-year highs last week on worries that supplies could tighten due to Ukraine-Russia tensions and worries about the conflict in Yemen.
