- Stockpiles of U.S. crude oil rose 1.2 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday, confounding expectations.
Analysts tracked by had forecast a draw of 152,000 barrels compared to a build of 5.7 million barrels the previous week.
Oil prices have been under pressure because of mounting evidence that it will take longer to bring down mounting stockpiles of crude as businesses struggle to come back after Covid-19 lockdowns. Crude Oil WTI Futures recently traded down 1.56%, at $37.71 a barrel, before Wednesday's data was reported.
Late Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute said U.S. crude stocks rose 3.3 million barrels, the third increase in four weeks.
