West Texas Intermediate crude's November contract, which expired as the front-month, fell $1.17, or 2.3 percent, to finish at $50.43. WTI's December contract , which will be front-month from Friday, slid $1.19 to settle at $50.63.On Wednesday, oil rallied after the U.S. government reported an unexpected drawdown of more than 5 million barrels in weekly crude stockpiles that drove WTI's November contract to a 15-month high of $51.93. [EIA/S]"This is predominately being driven by the dollar's strength," Matt Smith, director of commodity research New York's ClipperData said, referring to Thursday's retreat. "It's also to do with the dust settling on yesterday's report and the realization that it wasn't quite as bullish. "Some market participants noted that despite the crude drawdown, the EIA also reported an unexpected build of 2.5 million barrels in gasoline stockpiles instead of the drop that was forecast.There was also growing skepticism about the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' (OPEC) upcoming plan to limit production, said Tariq Zahir, trader at Tyche Capital Advisors in New York.

Source: The Star October 20, 2016 19:52 UTC