Crude oil futures were trading lower on global markets on Thursday. On the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), the January crude oil futures were trading at ₹5756 on Thursday afternoon as against the previous close of ₹5828, down by 1.24 per cent.

The March Brent oil futures were at $80.52, down by 0.38 per cent; and the February crude oil futures on WTI at $77.58, down by 0.35 per cent.

The minutes from the US Federal Reserve meeting showed that the Fed may increase rates more quickly than anticipated by markets. Market analysts noted that this weighed on riskier assets such as oil.

The increase in the US fuel stockpile when the country is witnessing an increase in the number of Covid cases also added to the market sentiments. Apart from this, the OPEC+ (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) and its allies, which met on January 4, decided to adjust upward the monthly overall production by 400,000 barrels a day for February.

The January natural gas futures were trading at ₹289.30 on MCX on Thursday afternoon against the previous close of ₹285.50, up by 1.33 per cent. The February futures of natural gas were at $3.874 on NYMEX, up by 0.21 per cent.

The US, one of the major exporters of natural gas, has seen a fall in temperatures leading to the freezing of some natural gas wells in some parts of the US. There is good demand for US natural gas from the markets in Europe and Asia.

NCDEX

On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), the January dhaniya futures traded at ₹9402 on Thursday afternoon against the previous close of ₹9270, up by 1.42 per cent.

The January guar gum futures were trading at ₹10875 on NCDEX on Thursday afternoon against the previous close of ₹11024, down by 1.35 per cent.

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