Oil futures held their ground above $100 U.S. a barrel on Wednesday as a jump in weekly U.S. crude supplies reported by the government came in at more than double what the market expected, but matched the size reported by a trade group a day earlier.
Oil traders also looked to the conclusion of the two-day Federal Reserve meeting for hints on the outlook for the U.S. economy, with a policy decision from the central bank due before Nymex oil trading session ends
Crude oil for April delivery advanced 49 cents, or 0.5%, to $100.19 U.S. a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was trading at around $100.11 U.S. shortly before the government supply data were released, then briefly pared gains after the data.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said Wednesday that crude stockpiles rose 5.9 million barrels for the week ended March 14. Analysts polled by Platts were looking for a climb of 2.6 million barrels.
The EIA said gasoline supplies fell by 1.5 million barrels, while distillate stockpiles dropped 3.1 million barrels. Gasoline stockpiles were expected to fall by 1.6 million barrels, while distillates, which includes heating oil, were seen down 900,000 barrels, according to the Platts poll.
On Nymex, April gasoline fell 2.5 cents, or 0.9%, to $2.88 U.S. a gallon, while April heating oil traded at $2.91 U.S. a gallon, down one cent, or 0.3%.
The Federal Reserve is expected to leave rates unchanged and continue scaling back the size of its bond-buying program when it concludes its two-day meeting Wednesday. Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen will hold her first news conference at 2:30 p.m. ET Wednesday — right at the close of oil trading on Nymex.
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