Oil Pares Losses After EIA Reports Fall Of 2.3 Mln Barrels In U.S. Crude Supplies

Oil futures pared some of their losses on Wednesday after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that domestic crude supplies declined by 2.3 million barrels for the week ended July 15. That matched the decline reported by the American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday, according to sources. Analysts polled by S&P Global Platts expected a fall of 1.25 million barrels. Gasoline supplies rose by 900,000 barrels, while distillate stockpiles edged down by 200,000 barrels last week, according to the EIA. August crude , which expires on Wednesday's settlement, fell 17 cents, or 0.4%, from Tuesday's settlement to $44.48 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices traded at $44.16 before the data.