Prices for U.S. crude were steady and Brent eased further on Wednesday after data from Washington showed an unexpected drop in U.S. crude inventories and a surprise rise in gasoline stockpiles.
Brent November crude futures were down 44 cents at $58 U.S. a barrel late morning Wednesday, while U.S. crude for November delivery edged up seven cents to $51.95 U.S.
Figures released Wednesday by the Energy Information Administration revealed that crude inventories fell by 1.8 million barrels in the week to Sept. 22, compared with analysts' expectations for an increase of 3.4 million barrels.
EIA also reported that refinery crude runs rose by one million barrels per day. Refinery utilization rates rose by 5.4 percentage points.
Gasoline stocks rose by 1.1 million barrels, compared with analysts' expectations in a poll for a 921,000-barrel drop. The EIA also said distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 814,000 barrels, versus expectations for a 2.2 million-barrel decline.
Wholesale U.S. gasoline prices were down 2.7% at $1.6538 per gallon.
Internationally, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and 11 rival producers, including Russia, have committed to output cuts of 1.8 million bpd between January 2017 and March 2018 to help global supply align with demand.
Turkey's repeated threat to cut oil exports from the Kurdistan region in northern Iraq pushed the price of Brent close to $60.00 U.S. a barrel on Monday for the first time since June 2015.
