US Oil Inventories Unexpectedly Declined by 1.3 Million Barrels Last Week

US crude oil inventories unexpectedly fell last week amid concerns over slowing demand and rising supply, according to the API report released on Tuesday.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate traded at $82.71 a barrel after trading down 15 cents, or 0.2%, at $85.46 a barrel following the report. API reported that US crude oil inventories decreased by 1.3 million barrels in the week ended October 14, compared to forecasts for an increase of 1.6 million barrels, and increased by 7.0 million barrels in the previous week. API data also showed that gasoline stocks fell by 2.2 million barrels and distillate stocks by 1.1 million barrels last week. The official government inventory report to be released on Thursday is expected to show that US crude oil stocks increased by 1.3 million barrels last week. Oil prices have given back recent gains amid lingering concerns about demand as the US is expected to boost emergency oil supplies. "Biden is expected to announce this week the release of the remaining 14 million barrels of the 180 million barrels allocated so far," Commerzbank said in a note. Follow Global Economic Developments on Social Media! Click here to follow Ieconomy official Facebook account! Click here to follow Ieconomy official Instagram account! Click here to follow Ieconomy official Twitter account!