Alex Longley and Josyana Joshua of Bloomberg report oil prices pared their declines as U.S. crude inventories rose less than expected. They write:
Oil pared declines as US crude inventories increased less than an industry report had projected.
West Texas Intermediate traded down about 0.2%, rebounding from an earlier decline of as much as 1.3%, after a US government report showed oil stockpiles rose 3.17 million barrels last week. That’s about a third of the 9.3 million-barrel increase projected by the industry-funded American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday. […]
Still, the generally more positive tone across markets in recent weeks has some banks calling for higher prices. JPMorgan Chase & Co. said Wednesday that crude could hit $100 a barrel if Russia’s recent decision to cut output isn’t balanced by other measures. US gasoline prices are also likely to hit $4 a gallon by May, the bank’s analysts, including Natasha Kaneva, wrote in a note.
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