Investing.com - Crude oil prices rebounded in Asia on Wednesday after industry data pointed to a mixed stocks picture on U.S. supplies.
The American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, said late Tuesday that its own data for the same week shows that crude stocks rose by 519,000 barrels in the week, according to industry sources.
The group also said that gasoline supplies fell by 3.4 million barrels and stocks of distillates, including heating oil and diesel fuel, increased by 570,000 barrels, according to the sources.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate crude oil for delivery in June traded at $101.93 a barrel, up 0.18%, after hitting an overnight session low of $101.51 a barrel and a high of $103.66 a barrel.
Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange fell 68 cents, or 0.6%, to $109.27 a barrel on Tuesday.
Overnight, crude futures dropped as investors ditched the commodity on concerns Wednesday's weekly U.S. inventory report will disappoint.
Analysts were expecting the report to show an increase in oil inventories last week, while gasoline inventories were expected to have declined.
Last week the EIA reported that crude oil inventories rose by a larger than forecast 10.01 million barrels in the week ended April 11. It was the largest one-week increase in U.S. oil stockpiles in 13 years.
Expectations for gains in U.S. stockpiles overshadowed ongoing concerns over heightened tension in eastern Ukraine.
A diplomatic accord aimed at easing the crisis in the region showed signs of faltering on Monday, with the U.S. and Russia both blaming each other for not implementing the terms of the agreement reached in Geneva last Thursday.
The U.S. is ready to slap fresh economic sanctions against Russia if it fails to take concrete steps to implement the terms of the Geneva accord, fanning fears over possible supply disruptions.
Russia is the world’s second largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia.