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New York - Oil prices Wednesday tracked US equity markets lower, declining for the fourth straight session since Friday's disappointing US jobs report.
US oil benchmark West Texas Intermediate fell 93 cents to $104.37 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The European benchmark, Brent crude for September delivery, lost 74 cents at $107.44 a barrel.
The US oil contract has fallen $3.52 per barrel, or 3.3%, since August 1. Leading US equity indices have also dropped the last three sessions in the wake of Friday's monthly US jobs report, which showed weaker-than-expected employment growth in July.
"The weakness in the Dow can be having some effect," said James Williams of WTRG Economics.
Kyle Cooper, managing partner at IAF Advisors in Houston, said the recent decline made sense, calling oil "rather pricey" above $105 a barrel given the fundamental supply and demand figures.
Wednesday's weekly US oil inventory report showed a decline of 1.3 million barrels, in line with analyst expectations.
US gasoline stocks had been forecast to decline by 400,000 barrels but instead increased by 100 000 barrels. Supplies of distillate fuels had been projected to shrink 200 000 barrels but instead added 500 000 barrels.
Analyst Carl Larry of Oil Outlooks and Opinions said the data suggests a need for lower gasoline production, especially as the market looks ahead to the fall when there is more modest gasoline demand. This pushed crude prices lower, he said.
"At some point, we're probably going to have to cut these (gasoline) runs back a little bit," Larry said. "I think that's what's keeping a little bit of pressure on the market."
