Oil Rallies As U.S. Crude Supplies Fall For The First Time In 11 Weeks

Oil prices rallied on Wednesday after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that crude supplies fell for the first time in 11 weeks. Inventories dropped by 3.6 million barrels for the week ended Dec. 4. The American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday reported a 1.9 million-barrel decline, according to sources, while analysts polled by Platts expected supplies to be down by 1.2 million barrels. Gasoline supplies rose by 800,000 barrels, while distillate stockpiles jumped by 5 million barrels last week, according to the EIA. January crude traded at $38.86 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, up $1.35 cents, or 3.6%, after the data were released. Prices traded at $38.18 before the data.