The Energy Information Administration (EIA) said crude inventories fell 1.6 million barrels to 417.5 million barrels in the week ended Sept. 13, compared with analysts’ expectations in a Reuters poll for a 500,000-barrel draw. Gasoline and distillate inventories, meanwhile, rose last week.
Brent crude futures for November were up 11 cents, or 0.2%, at $73.81 a barrel at 11:22 a.m. EDT (1522 GMT). US crude futures for October rose 21 cents, or 0.3%, to $71.40.
Bob Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho Bank, said that while the EIA report was more supportive of oil prices than Tuesday’s American Petroleum Institute data, investors believed last week’s Hurricane Francine had affected crude’s decline.
“It’s definitely a bit of a storm report,” said Yavgar, who added that a slowdown in crude inputs to refineries last week kept prices from moving higher.
The Federal Reserve is expected to cut its first interest rate in more than four years at 1800 GMT, with markets pricing in a 63% chance of a 50 basis-point cut.
“Uncertainty over the magnitude of a possible Fed rate cut later today is also keeping investors cautious,” UBS analyst Giovanni Stanovo said.
Oil received some support from threats of increased violence in the Middle East after Hezbollah accused Israel of attacking the militant group with a pager loaded with explosives in Lebanon. Hezbollah vowed to retaliate against Israel, whose military declined to comment on the blasts.
Brent has staged a recovery, plunging below $70 to its lowest level since December 2021 on September 10. It faces resistance around $75 due to weak global refinery margins indicating subdued demand, he added.
Mazen Salhab, chief market strategist MENA at BDSwiss said, “The end of peak summer demand and a negative shift in trader sentiment have led to lower prices, although potential conflicts in the Middle East still pose a risk of supply disruptions.” (Reporting by Laila Kearney in New York, Alex Lawler in London and Arunima Kumar in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Yuka Obayashi and Sudarshan Varadhan; Editing by Jason Neely and David Evans)
(You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel)