Oil Turns Lower As Crude Supplies Fall, But Product Stockpiles Rise

Oil prices turned lower Wednesday after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a weekly decline in crude supplies, but also said that petroleum-product inventories climbed. Crude stockpiles fell 5.5 million barrels for the week ended Aug. 21. Analysts polled by Platts forecast a crude-stock rise of 1.9 million barrels, while the American Petroleum Institute Tuesday said supplies dropped 7.3 million barrels, according to sources. Gasoline supplies, however, rose unexpectedly by 1.7 million barrels while distillate stockpiles climbed 1.4 million barrels last week, according to the EIA. October crude was at $39.16 a barrel, down 15 cents, or 0.3%, on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices traded at $39.35 before the report.