Oil Pulls Back as US Inventories Rise
Crude oil fell below $108 per barrel on Wednesday, retreating from four-month highs after industry data showed a surprise increase in US crude inventories despite widening supply disruptions in the Middle East. API data showed US crude stockpiles surged by 7.14 million barrels last week following a 300,000-barrel decline in the previous week, defying expectations for another drawdown. Meanwhile, oil loadings at Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu port remained suspended following the shutdown of the crucial East-West pipeline. There is still no clear timeline for when operations at the key pipeline, which provides an alternative route around the Strait of Hormuz, will resume, as Iran-backed Houthi militants renewed attacks on Saudi Arabia this week. In Libya, the national oil company also suspended operations at two oilfields and a pumping station amid ongoing protests.
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Brent crude fell below $108 per barrel on Wednesday, retreating from four-month highs after industry data showed a surprise increase in US crude inventories despite widening supply disruptions in the Middle East. 14 million barrels last week following a 300,000-barrel decline in the previous week, defying expectations for another drawdown. Meanwhile, oil loadings at Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu port remained suspended following the shutdown of the crucial East-West pipeline.
There is still no clear timeline for when operations at the key pipeline, which provides an alternative route around the Strait of Hormuz, will resume, as Iran-backed Houthi militants renewed attacks on Saudi Arabia this week. In Libya, the national oil company also suspended operations at two oilfields and a pumping station amid ongoing protests.