Crude-oil futures held to gains on Wednesday after a government weekly report showed a larger-than-expected decline in supplies.
Crude for September delivery rose 35 cents, or 0.4%, to $94.01 U.S. a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices had added to their advance immediately after the data, but trimmed their advance later on.
Oil traded at $94.41 U.S. a barrel immediately before the data. The Energy Information Administration reported a decline of 3.7 million barrels of crude for the week ended Aug. 3. That compared with expectations of a decline around 300,000 barrels, according to analysts polled by Platts.
The EIA also reported gasoline supplies were down 1.8 million barrels, and distillates retreated 700,000 barrels. The analysts surveyed by Platts had forecast drops of two million barrels for gasoline and one million barrels for distillates.
