Oil markets open slightly lower as market weighs mixed supply signals

Oil futures were down slightly Thursday morning, after rising sharply in the first half of the week, as traders weighed a larger-than-expected build in U.S. oil stocks against tightening global supply.

Brent futures were down 38 cents, or 0.35%, at $108.38 a barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were off 58 cents, or 0.56%, to $10.65 a barrel at 0046 GMT.

Both contracts on Wednesday had shrugged off a large build in U.S. crude inventories to end the trading session roughly 4% higher. The jump in prices came as worries of more disruptions to global supply continued to rattle the market.