WTI Crude Oil rose above $81 per barrel on Wednesday, extending gains from the previous session as supply-side uncertainties overshadowed demand concerns.
Investors awaited further details on G7 plans to cap Russian oil and worried about how Russia would respond after it previously stated that it won’t sell crude to countries that adopt such measures.
In the US, industry data showed that US crude oil supply inventories dropped by 4.2 million barrels last week, much higher than forecasts for a 2.2 million barrel draw.
The US oil benchmark was also lifted after the UAE, Kuwait, Iraq and Algeria backed claims by Saudi Arabia’s energy minister that OPEC+ was not considering increasing output.
Meanwhile, demand concerns stemming from top crude importer China’s Covid woes and rising global interest rates kept oil prices from further gains.
While Gasoline futures bounce back above the $2.5 per gallon mark, rebounding from an over one-month low of around $2.3, as drivers prepare to take to the road for Thanksgiving.
Also demand remains solid ahead of the travel holiday, rising crude oil prices were the main driver for the upside momentum in the short term.
Meanwhile, EIA data showed that US gasoline stocks rose by 2.207 million barrels to 207.9 million last week, after fourth consecutive weekly drops, and way more than market expectations of a 0.31-million-barrel increase
