Investing.com - West Texas Intermediate oil futures added to losses in North America trade on Wednesday, after data showed that oil supplies in the U.S. rose more than expected last week.
Crude oil for May delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange slumped $1.09, or 2.63%, to trade at $40.36 a barrel by 14:35GMT, or 11:35AM ET. Prices were at around $40.55 prior to the release of the inventory data.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that crude oil inventories rose by 9.4 million barrels in the week ended March 18. Market analysts' expected a crude-stock rise of 3.0 million barrels, while the American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday reported a supply gain of 8.8 million barrels.
Supplies at Cushing, Oklahoma, the key delivery point for Nymex crude, fell by 1.258 barrels last week, the EIA said.
Total U.S. crude oil inventories stood at an all-time high of 532.5 million barrels as of last week, underlining concerns over a domestic supply glut.
The report also showed that gasoline inventories decreased by 4.6 million barrels, compared to expectations for a drop of 1.5 million barrels, while distillate stockpiles rose by 0.9 million barrels.
Since falling to 13-year lows at $26.05 on February 11, U.S. crude futures have rebounded by approximately 45% as a decline in U.S. shale production boosted sentiment. However, analysts warned that market conditions remained weak due to an ongoing glut.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for May delivery declined 92 cents, or 2.2%, to $40.87 a barrel.
On Tuesday, London-traded Brent futures tacked on 25 cents, or 0.6%, as continued hopes major oil producers will discuss a potential output freeze lifted prices.
Producers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and non-members are due to meet on April 17 in Qatar discuss the output freeze. But it isn’t clear exactly which, or how many, OPEC and non-OPEC members will attend the meeting.
Brent futures are up by roughly 45%, since briefly dropping below $30 a barrel on February 11. Short-covering began in mid-February after Saudi Arabia and fellow OPEC members Qatar and Venezuela agreed with non-OPEC member Russia to freeze output at January levels, provided other oil exporters joined in.
Meanwhile, Brent's premium to the WTI crude contract stood at 51 cents a barrel, compared to a gap of 34 cents by close of trade on Tuesday.