Crude oil prices fell today amid ample US fuel stocks and the restart of two Nigerian oil installations that were shut down last week after an attack by local villagers.
US crude eased 18 cents to $58.53 a barrel this evening, after falling to within a dollar of this year's low of $56.55 earlier in the session. London Brent crude eased 33 cents at $58.65 a barrel.
Royal Dutch Shell resumed production of about 47,000 barrels per day at two of its in flow stations Nigeria.
Villagers stormed four facilities, including three operated by Shell, last week to press for contracts to supply speed boats and food to the facilities. One flow station remained shut, while Chevron reopened its facility earlier this week.
Separately, armed attackers in Nigeria on Thursday kidnapped a Briton and an American from an oil industry ship.
Violence in the world's eighth largest oil exporter has cut oil output by about 500,000 bpd since February and has helped keep prices at historically high levels.
Traders shrugged off Wednesday's mixed US inventory report which showed US distillate stocks, including heating oil, fell by 2.7 million barrels and petrol inventories dropped by 2.8 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration said.
