Oil Trading Higher After EIA Reports Drop in U.S. Inventories

Oil prices rose on Wednesday after official data showed a decline in crude inventories in the United States last week.

Crude inventories declined by 4.1 million barrels for the week ended July 23, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Gasoline stockpiles fell by 2.3 million barrels and distillate inventories drooped by 3.1 million barrels.

Gains by oil futures were limited following the release of the data due to concerns over the spread of the coronavirus Delta variant.

Brent crude is nearing the $75 level, trading higher by 0.28% at $74.69 a barrel, while WTI added 0.61% to reach $72.09 per barrel.