2018.08.2215:35:00UTC+00Crude Oil Futures End Higher Again

Crude oil prices rose sharply on Wednesday, lifted by data showing a larger than expected decline in U.S. crude stockpiles last week.

After market hours on Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute reported an extra-large oil inventory draw of 5.17 million barrels, compared to analyst expectations for a draw of 1.497 million barrels.

Meanwhile, the Energy Information Administration said U.S. crude inventories dropped by 5.836 million barrels in the week ended August 17. That was substantially higher than expected draw of 1.497 million barrels.

Crude Imports fell by about 1.059 million barrels a day, while exports fell by 2.58 million barrels per day, data from EIA showed.

Crude oil futures for October delivery ended up $2.02, or 3.1%, at $67.86 a barrel, the highest settlement in almost two weeks.

On Tuesday, crude oil futures for October ended up $0.42, or 0.6%, at $65.84 a barrel. The September WTI contract expired on Tuesday at $67.35.

Traders seemingly believed that global crude supplies will be under pressure once U.S.' sanctions on Iran take effect in early November.

Crude oil suffered some losses last week amid fears of a possible drop in demand for crude due to U.S.-China trade tensions. However, with the U.S. and China engaging in a fresh round of trade talks, markets expect crude demand to pick up pace.