Crude oil futures fell by midday Wednesday trade after a four-day rally, following data showing higher U.S. crude inventory and a cautious OPEC report.
At 11:45 a.m. ET, June NYMEX West Texas Intermediate crude futures were down 60cts at $63.05/bbl and July WTI was off by the same amount at $62.65/bbl.
London-based ICE July Brent contracts were down by 55cts to $66.05/bbl and August Brent fell around 50cts to $65.60/bbl.
Prior to Wednesday, both crude benchmarks soared $4-5/bbl on economic optimism after U.S. and China reached a deal to suspend harsh tariffs on each other for 90 days as the world's two largest economies worked to avert a trade war.
June ULSD futures were 1.8cts higher at $2.1895/gal and July ULSD edged up 0.7ct to $2.1385/gal. June RBOB prices inched down by 0.25ct to $2.1635/gal and July RBOB was off by 0.7ct to $2.1255/gal.
The latest Energy Information Administration data showed U.S. commercial crude oil stocks increased by 3.5 million bbl for the week ended Friday. On refined products, diesel inventory fell sharply by 3.2 million bbl and gasoline stocks also dropped by 1.1 million bbl.
The energy market also took trading cues from the latest monthly report published by OPEC on Wednesday. The oil cartel trimmed its economic growth outlook but struck a cautiously optimistic tone on trade developments as it kept its oil demand forecast steady.
In the spot market, Chicago RBOB prices rose by around 4cts to $2.21/gal, which was the most expensive east of the Rockies, driven by active refiner buying after the latest EIA data showed a 1.5 million bbl draw in the Midwest (PADD 2) region.
This content was created by Oil Price Information Service, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. OPIS is run independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
--Reporting by Frank Tang, ftang@opisnet.com; Editing by Michael Kelly, mkelly@opisnet.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 14, 2025 12:24 ET (16:24 GMT)
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