Commodity Daily News

Oil Prices Rebound above $70 a Barrel

Crude Oil ended higher Wednesday as a rally on Wall Street and sudden Dollar weakness overshadowed government data showing a bigger-than-expected rise in crude supplies. While the fundamental picture is bearish, Crude is being supported by a weaker U.S Dollar and stronger equity markets. Traders appeared to shrug off government data showing a build-up in crude supplies. Oil's strength came despite a report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) showing U.S. Crude Oil Inventories rose 2.5 million barrels in the week to August 7, well over analysts' expectations.

Oil trimmed gains after the U.S. Federal Reserve in its policy statement said the U.S. economy is leveling out and that it was extending purchases of long-term U.S. Treasury debt to the end of October. Crude also rose as the International Energy Agency (IEA) boosted its oil-demand outlook for this year and next. In its report yesterday, the IEA said that the world will need 85.25 million barrels of oil a day next year, 70,000 barrels more than previously estimated.