Oil prices steady after big drop in U.S. crude stocks | Reuters

Oil prices steady after big drop in U.S. crude stocks | Reuters

Oil prices were little changed on Wednesday, paring gains after spiking earlier on data showing U.S. inventories dropped by nearly 5 million barrels and demand rose to an all-time high.

Brent crude futures gained 49 cents, or 0.5%, to $91.27 a barrel by 1:41 p.m. EST (1841 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1 cent to $89.35 a barrel.

U.S. crude stocks fell by 4.8 million barrels last week, including a sharp drawdown at the key Cushing hub, as overall product supplied, a proxy for demand, hit a record 21.9 million barrels per day over the past four weeks, government data showed on Wednesday.

The heavy activity and ramp-up in U.S. refinery processing suggest the market could be looking at tight supplies for coming months as well.