Crude Oil
Crude prices slipped on Wednesday despite a bullish weekly supply report, as the data revealed that inventories rose at a key U.S. delivery point. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that U.S. crude oil inventories declined by 2.1 million barrels in the week ended Aug. 22, far surpassing expectations for a decline of 1.3 million barrels. Total U.S. crude oil inventories stood at 360.5 million barrels as of last week.
Gold
Gold prices edged lower in listless trading on Wednesday ahead of a flurry of economic indicators due for release on Thursday. Gold has come under pressure recently on sentiments that the Federal Reserve remains on track to close up stimulus programs around October and begin raising interest rates in 2015. Earlier Wednesday, gold prices rose as the dollar fell after German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schauble said markets may have branded recent comments out of the European Central Bank as overly dovish.