Data from the US Energy Information Administration, released on Wednesday, showed a sudden rise in stocks of crude oil and gasoline in the United States during the past week.
The data appeared as oil market participants bet on an increase in consumption before the start of the summer travel season in the United States, whether by road or flight.
The administration stated that crude oil inventories declined during the past week ending on May 5 by 2.951 million barrels, after declining in the previous week by 1.280 million barrels, while analysts had expected a decline of 910 thousand barrels.
As for gasoline, the Energy Information Administration stated that inventories fell by 3.168 million barrels last week, while expectations were for a decline of 1.233 million barrels, after an increase of 1.743 million barrels in the previous week.
On the other hand, US inventory data issued by the American Petroleum Institute, which represents corporate interests, showed an increase in inventory during the past week by 3.6 million barrels.
Source: RT
