Investing.com – Crude oil prices settled lower on Wednesday after data showing crude stockpiles fell for the second straight week failed to offset an unexpected build in product inventories ahead of the OPEC meeting.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude futures for January delivery fell 1.2% to settle at $57.30 a barrel, while on London's Intercontinental Exchange, Brent lost 0.81% to trade at $62.73 a barrel.
Crude oil prices came under pressure after a mostly bearish Energy Information Agency (EIA) inventory report showed crude stockpiles fell more-than-estimated, but both gasoline and distillates supplies unexpectedly rose.
Inventories of U.S. crude fell by roughly 3.4 million barrels for the week ended Nov. 24, beating expectations of a draw of 2.3 million barrels.
Gasoline inventories – one of the products that crude is refined into – rose by 3.6 million barrels, well above expectations for rise of 1.2 million barrels, while supplies of distillate – the class of fuels that includes diesel and heating oil – unexpectedly rose by about 2.8 barrels, missing expectations for a draw of 230,000 barrels.
The unexpected rise in product inventories comes a day ahead of the OPEC meeting at which the oil-cartel is expected to extend the production-cut agreement through 2018 March.
Investors remained concerned, however that OPEC, and non-OPEC members like Russia, are reluctant to agree prolonged extension to current production-cut deal amid fears that major oil producers, particularly U.S. shale producers, who are not part of the pact will ramp up output to gain market share.
U.S. crude oil production has risen more than 15% to 9.66 million barrels per day (bpd) since mid-2016, not far from top producers Russia and Saudi Arabia.