17.07.201906:25:00UTC+00Oil Prices Regain Some Ground

Oil prices rose on Wednesday after steep losses in the previous session, as Barry weakened to a tropical depression and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Iran was prepared to negotiate about its missile program.

Benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.8 percent to $64.88 per barrel, after having fallen 3.2 percent in the previous session. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 0.6 percent at $57.97 per barrel, after ending down 3.3 percent on Tuesday.

The upside remained capped somewhat after industry data showed a smaller-than-expected decline in U.S. crude inventories.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a small crude oil inventory draw of 1.401 million barrels for the week ending July 11, compared to analyst expectations for a decrease of 2.7 million barrels.

Official data from the U.S. government's Energy Information Administration (EIA) will be published later today, with analysts expecting another drawdown.