Oil Prices Edge Up Despite Surprising Inventory Build

Oil prices edged up late Wednesday, despite US commercial crude inventories unexpectedly rising by 4.4 million barrels in the week ended August 14.

The price of WTI oil increased by 0.6% to $85.48 a barrel, while Brent rose by 0.3% to $91.26 a barrel.

However, energy stocks were mixed, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index gaining 0.2%, but the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) slipping 0.3%.

The inventory data suggests that the market is signaling a looser near-term environment, which can put pressure on near-dated spreads despite the headline price holding up due to other factors such as geopolitics and refinery runs.