U.S. and Brent crude futures pared gains on Wednesday in volatile trading after both contracts briefly extended gains after a government report showed crude inventories fell last week, against expectations stocks would be up.
Gasoline stocks fell more than expected and distillate stocks fell, though slightly less than forecast, according to the report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, April crude rose 32 cents to $99.95 U.S. a barrel at 10:45 a.m. EST, trading from $99.21 to $101.47 U.S. Prices were up about 85 cents U.S. before the report.
ICE Brent April crude LCOJ1 rose eight cents to $115.50 U.S. a barrel, trading from $114.53 to $116.37 U.S.
Brent prices were about 22 cents U.S. higher before the report.
