Oil eased after the biggest increase in more than two weeks as signs of a stumble in U.S.-China trade talks offset shrinking stockpiles at a key American crude storage hub.

January futures slipped 0.4% in New York after surging 3% on Wednesday, the biggest gain since Nov. 1. President Donald Trump is expected to sign a billsupporting Hong Kong protesters, potentially complicating a long-awaited trade deal with Beijing. U.S. crude inventories at Cushing, the delivery point for West Texas Intermediate oil, dropped by 2.3 million barrels last week, the most since August. Nationwide stockpiles expanded less than expected.

WTI for January delivery lost 21 cents to $56.80 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange as of 9:53 a.m. Singapore time. The December contract, which expired Wednesday, added $1.90 to close at $57.11.

Brent for January settlement fell 25 cents, or 0.4%, to $62.15 on the London-based ICE Futures Europe Exchange. The contract climbed $1.49 to $62.40 on Wednesday. The global benchmark crude traded at a $5.36 premium to the WTI.

Source : Bloomberg