Brent traded near $86 a barrel. The industry-funded American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday said nationwide stockpiles expanded 9.3 million barrels last week, according to people familiar with the data. It also reported a 2.4 million barrel increase in crude at the Cushing, Oklahoma hub, although gasoline stockpiles shrank overall. ADVERTISEMENT CONTINUE READING BELOW
If confirmed by government data due later Wednesday, levels of crude at Cushing would see the biggest weekly gain in barrel terms since January 2023. Meanwhile, gasoline inventories would fall for an eighth week, the longest run of declines in almost a year. Oil has rallied this quarter after breaking out of a tight range in the year’s first couple of months. Geopolitical uncertainty amid Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian oil infrastructure and extended supply cutbacks by OPEC+ have buoyed prices, although a challenging economic outlook in China and robust non-OPEC supply growth remain headwinds.
“Given an approaching end of month, end of quarter and the long Easter weekend, it is understandable that a little froth comes off the markets,” said John Evans, an analyst at brokerage PVM. “Yesterday’s likely trimming of length and the resultant negative day is exacerbated by a surprising build in crude stock data produced by the API.”
Still, the generally more positive tone across markets in recent weeks has some banks calling for higher prices. JPMorgan Chase & Co. warned Wednesday that crude could hit $100 a barrel if Russia’s recent decision to cut output isn’t balanced by other measures. US gasoline prices are also likely to hit $4 a gallon by May, the bank’s analysts, including Natasha Kaneva, wrote in a note.