Oil falls as investors take profits, but fuel switching caps losses | Reuters

Oil falls as investors take profits, but fuel switching caps losses | Reuters

Oil prices fell on Thursday as some investors scooped up profits from the recent rally, though solid demand in the United States and a switch to fuel oil from coal and gas amid surging prices capped losses.

Brent crude futures fell 54 cents, or 0.6%, to $85.28 a barrel by 0649 GMT,turning down from earlier gains that took the benchmark to the highest since October 2018. It rose 0.9% the previous day.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for December dropped 33 cents, or 0.4%, to $83.09 a barrel. November WTI crude, which expired on Wednesday, settled up 91 cents, or 1.1%, after touching the highest since October 2014 earlier in the session.

"We saw some correction, but overall sentiment remained firm as there have been no large increases in output by the United States or OPEC," said Satoru Yoshida, a commodity analyst with Rakuten Securities.