By Yasin Ebrahim
Investing.com - U.S. oil stockpiles climbed last week, adding to concerns about the outlook for demand amid a mutant strain of Covid-19 that threatens further travel restrictions.
U.S. crude inventories rose by 2.7 million barrels last week, according to an estimate released Tuesday by the American Petroleum Institute, after a build of 1.973 million barrels the previous week. Gasoline inventories fell by 224,000 and distillate stocks rose by 1.03 million barrels.
Crude Oil WTI Futures, the U.S. benchmark for oil was 2.44% higher after settling down 2% at $47.02 per barrel.
The outlook for energy demand has taken a fresh knock as concerns a new strain of Covid-19 believed to be already in the U.S. could lead to curbs on international travel.
"CDC is following the situation closely and actively assessing the implications of the new variant and response options with respect to international travel," the agency said in a statement.
Official government report due Wednesday expected to show weekly U.S. crude supplies decreased by about 3.19 million barrels last week.