2021.08.1810:15:00UTC+00Oil Recovers After Four Days Of Declines

Oil prices pushed higher Wednesday, recovering after four days of straight declines as investors await the latest crude oil supply data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration later in the day.

Benchmark Brent crude futures rose 70 cents, or 1 percent, to $69.73 a barrel, while WTI crude oil futures were up 55 cents, or 0.8 percent, at $66.89 a barrel.

As the spread of the delta coronavirus variant threatens demand, markets are waiting for the release of the latest storage data for directional cues.

The American Petroleum Institute, an industry body, reported late Tuesday a draw of just over 1 million barrels in U.S. crude supplies for the week ending Aug. 13.

The API data also reportedly showed an inventory decline of 1.2 million barrels for gasoline, while distillate supplies edged up by 502,000 barrels.

Investors are trying to balance the reopening of economies amid rising vaccination rates.

U.S. shale oil production is expected to rise to 8.1 million barrels per day (bpd) in September, the highest since April 2020, according to the Energy Information Administration's monthly drilling output report.