Crude Gained On Pessimistic US Report

Crude price gained $1yesterday after the US inventory report showed an unexpected fall in crude oil stockpiles.

US light crude rose $1 to $46.40 a barrel on the NYMEX, recovering from a drop earlier to $44.83.

Meanwhile, IPE?s London Brent crude futures were up 68 cents to $43.75, after earlier hitting $44.14.

According to the US government data, crude inventories fell by one million barrels last week, confounding expectations among analysts for a rise of one million barrels.

Despite the fall, crude stocks remain more than 8 per cent higher than at the same time last year.

Distillate stocks, which include heating oil, fell more than expected after the recent blizzards and cold snap that gripped the US Northeast. Stocks were down three million barrels, compared to expectations for a 2.1 million barrel drop. Lower US refinery run rates also supported prices.