Oil Trades Near $65 With U.S. Inventories Below 5-Year Average

Futures in New York lost 0.6 percent after jumping to a six-week high on Wednesday. American crude stockpiles fell last week by the most since January, government data showed, confounding more than 80 percent of analysts in a Bloomberg survey. It added to signs that production cuts by OPEC and Russia are successfully clearing a global glut.

Oil prices are approaching the highs of January, after a wider market rout spurred the worst February decline in half a decade. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies have concluded they will eradicate the oil surplus by September even as investors continue to weigh those comments against surging U.S. crude production.

U.S. crude inventories fell by 2.62 million barrels last week, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday. Analysts had forecast a gain of 3.25 million barrels, and only two of the 12 surveyed had expected a decline.

America’s gasoline inventories also tumbled for a third week to the lowest level since late January, while distillate stockpiles contracted for a sixth straight week to the least since December. Still, U.S. oil production has continued to surge, with output hitting a fresh record last week.
more at:  https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-22/oil-extends-rally-above-65-after-surprise-u-s-stockpile-drop