(Bloomberg) -- Oil fell as investors weighed a mixed report on U.S. stockpiles and chances the Biden administration may tap emergency reserves.
West Texas Intermediate was down 0.4% after easing on Tuesday. The industry-funded American Petroleum Institute reported nationwide crude inventories rose 655,000 barrels last week, according to people familiar with the data. However, the report also showed a draw in oil at the storage hub of Cushing, as well as lower gasoline holdings. Official figures come later on Wednesday.
U.S. President Joe Biden has been weighing the merits of releasing oil from the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve to try to quell surging gasoline prices. Stephen Nalley, acting administrator at the Energy Information Administration, said on Tuesday that the impact of such a move would be pretty “short-lived”.
After hitting a seven-year high last month crude has eased, and traders are trying to figure out the market’s likely trajectory into 2022. The International Energy Agency said this week while demand growth remains robust, supply is catching up. Meanwhile, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said a surplus may soon emerge as the rebound from the pandemic falters.
Crude in the tanks at Cushing -- the delivery point in Oklahoma for U.S. futures -- has sunk to a three-year low after dropping for the past five weeks, according to official data from the Energy Information Administration.
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