29.04.202010:19:00UTC+00Oil Prices Rebound On Smaller Than Expected Inventory Build

Oil prices rebounded on Wednesday after U.S. stockpiles rose less than expected and gasoline stocks fell, helping ease investor worries about limited storage capacity.

Benchmark Brent crude rallied 2.8 percent to $23.38 per barrel, while U.S. crude futures were up nearly 15 percent at $14.20 per barrel.

Industry group the American Petroleum Institute reported late Tuesday that U.S. crude supplies rose by 10 million barrels to 510 million barrels in the week to April 24, compared with analysts' expectations for a build of 10.6 million barrels.

The report also showed that gasoline stocks fell by 1.1 million barrels, compared with analyst forecasts for a 2.5-million-barrel rise.

Inventory data from the Energy Information Administration will be released later today.

Analysts also expect oil demand to modestly recover from the April lows as some European countries and U.S. cities move to ease lockdown measures.

The Texas Railroad Commission said in a notice on Tuesday that it will hold a vote on 5 May to decide on whether to require oil producers in the state to cut oil production.

Officials in the states of North Dakota and Oklahoma are also examining ways to legally allow output cuts.