Oil prices fall on Wednesday

Oil prices fell on Wednesday after a two-day rally, pressured by an unexpectedly large build in US crude inventories, while supply disruptions in the Middle East continued to support prices.

Brent crude futures fell $1.22, or 0.67 per cent, to $107.53 a barrel at 0655 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate futures declined $1.64, or 1.55 per cent, to $104.19.

US crude inventories rose by 7.1 million barrels in the week ended September 11, compared with analysts’ expectations for a 1.6 million-barrel draw, according to American Petroleum Institute data cited by market sources.

Despite the inventory build, traders remained focused on disruptions to physical supplies, particularly Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline and Yanbu export infrastructure following attacks on Saudi energy facilities.

Saudi Arabia has offered additional crude loadings to Asian refiners via ship-to-ship transfers off Oman’s Sohar port after drone attacks damaged its key pipeline to the Red Sea.

Meanwhile, visible vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz fell to four on Tuesday from seven a day earlier, well below the 10-day average of 18.

Attribution: Reuters