Oil price rises on stockpile drop

NEW YORK, December 24, 2015 – The oil price rose more than 3% on Wednesday due to the surprise drop in American crude inventories, but gains were limited as global supplies remained high and OPEC posted a low export demand outlook.

West Texas Intermediate edged up USD 1.36 to USD 37.50 per barrel, while Brent crude jumped USD 1.25 to USD 37.36 per barrel. Brent had reached an 11-year low on Wednesday at USD 35.98.

US crude inventories decreased by 5.88 million barrels, down to less than 485 million, according to the US Energy Information Administration, which had predicted earlier that they would rise by 1.4 million barrels.

OPEC’s Wednesday report placed 2020 demand for crude from member countries below 2016 demand. The cartel expects rival producers, especially the USA, which lifted a 40-year crude export ban last week, to prove resilient in the low oil price environment.

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