Oil prices eased off six-month highs Thursday in Asia after rallying the day before to above $62 a barrel on a bigger-than-expected fall in U.S. crude inventories, according to AP. Benchmark crude for July delivery was down 50 cents to $61.54 a barrel by late afternoon in Singapore in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil has surged about 75 percent since March on signs the global economy, while still struggling through a severe slowdown, may have avoided a worst-case scenario. On Wednesday, the July contract rose $1.94 to settle at $62.04 after the government said U.S. crude inventories fell for a second week, suggesting demand may be improving. Crude stockpiles dropped by 2.1 million barrels for the week ended May 15, according to Energy Department's Energy Information Administration. Gasoline inventories dropped by 4.3 million barrels. In other Nymex trading, gasoline for June delivery fell 0.60 cent to $1.80 a gallon and heating oil dropped 0.86 cents to $1.53 a gallon. Natural gas for June delivery slid 1.1 cents to $3.96 per 1,000 cubic feet. In London, Brent prices fell 44 cents to $60.15 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
