Investing.com - Oil prices pushed lower in European trade on Wednesday, amid speculation weekly supply data due later in the session will show U.S. crude inventories rose unexpectedly last week.
After markets closed Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, said that U.S. oil inventories rose by a surprising 2.2 million barrels in the week ended July 8. Gasoline stocks increased by 1.5 million barrels, while distillate inventories added 2.6 million barrels.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration will release its weekly report on oil supplies at 14:30GMT, or 10:30AM ET, Wednesday amid expectations for a drop of 2.95 million barrels.
Gasoline stockpiles are expected to decline by 432,000 barrels while stocks of distillates, which include heating oil and diesel, are forecast to increase by 256,000 barrels, according to analysts.
Crude oil for August delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange shed 51 cents, or 1.09%, to trade at $46.29 a barrel by 07:52GMT, or 3:52AM ET, after soaring $2.04, or 4.56%, a day earlier, amid a broad improvement in risk sentiment.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for September delivery dropped 60 cents, or 1.26%, to $47.87. On Tuesday, London-traded Brent futures surged $2.22, or 4.8%, its biggest daily gain since April 8.
Oil was boosted after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries forecast higher demand for its crude next year as the global surplus fades.
In its monthly market report published Tuesday, OPEC said that demand for crude from its own 14 members was expected to rise to average 33.0 million barrels per day in 2017, representing a gain of 1.1 million barrels per day over the current year.
Global oil demand will increase by 1.2 million barrels a day next year to reach an average of 95.3 million a day, with almost all of the growth concentrated in emerging economies such as India and China.
The rise in demand growth would come as rival non-OPEC supply continued to fall. Oil production outside OPEC will fall by 100,000 barrels a day to 55.9 million a day, as growth in Brazil and Canada is eclipsed by declines in Mexico, the U.S. and Norway, according to OPEC.
The International Energy Agency will release its own monthly report on global oil supply and demand later in the session.