Oil edges higher after U.S. crude, fuel stockpiles draw down | Reuters

Oil edges higher after U.S. crude, fuel stockpiles draw down | Reuters:

Oil prices edged higher on Wednesday, supported by U.S. government data that showed crude and fuel inventories dropped last week, though concerns about the ongoing coronavirus pandemic capped gains. 


Brent crude LCOc1 rose 5 cents to settle at $41.77 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 gained 13 cents to settle at $39.93 a barrel.

U.S. crude, gasoline and distillate inventories all fell last week, Energy Information Administration data showed. Crude inventories USOILC=ECI fell by 1.6 million barrels, less than forecast; gasoline stocks USOILG=ECI dropped more than expected, sliding by 4 million barrels; while distillate stockpiles USOILD=ECI posted a surprise drawdown of 3.4 million barrels.

“The big surprise was the distillates were well below average,” said Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.