Oil Prices Jump Nearly 4% on Declining US Gasoline Inventories

Oil prices surged nearly 4% on Wednesday, settling above $103 a barrel. This significant increase in oil prices was driven by declining US gasoline and distillate inventories, which outweighed an unexpected rise in crude stockpiles.

Brent crude futures rose $3.83, or 3.86%, to $103.08 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained $1.64, or 1.81%, to $92.16 a barrel.

The US Energy Information Administration reported that crude oil inventories increased by 3 million barrels in the week ended September 18, reaching 426.4 million barrels. Analysts had expected a decrease of approximately 641,000 barrels.