Oil extends gains into third session amid tighter U.S. supply

SYDNEY (Reuters) – U.S. oil prices edged up on Thursday to extend gains into a third session, with widely watched data showing signs of tightening supply in the United States.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $54.41 per barrel at 0052 GMT, up 19 cents from their last settlement. WTI futures closed up 1.7 percent on Wednesday, when prices touched their highest since Nov. 21 at $54.93 a barrel.

International futures had yet to trade, after closing up 2.2 percent in the previous session.

“Oil prices rallied after the (Energy Information Administration) weekly report showed crude stockpiles rose less than expected,” said Edward Moya, market analyst at OANDA.

“U.S. stockpiles may continue to fall as Saudi Arabia continues to trim exports to the U.S.”

oil stockpiles climbed less than expected last week due to a drop in imports, while gasoline and distillate inventories fell as refiners slowed production, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

Crude inventories rose 919,000 barrels in the week to Jan. 25, compared with analyst expectations for an increase of 3.2 million barrels.

Net U.S. crude imports fell last week by 1 million barrels per day.

Disclaimer: Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. All CFDs (stocks, indexes, futures) and Forex prices are not provided by exchanges but rather by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual market price, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Therefore Fusion Media doesn`t bear any responsibility for any trading losses you might incur as a result of using this data.

Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.