Investing.com - Crude oil prices fell in Asia on Wednesday as U.S. industry data on stockpiles showed another solid gain.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, WTI crude for December delivery fell 0.41% to $47.69 a barrel.
The American Petroleum Institute, or API, said crude oil stockpiles rose 2.8 million barrels last week, continuing a series of steady builds, with the focus now on. Wednesday's government report, that could show that U.S. crude inventories rose by 2.7 million barrels for the week ending on Oct. 30.
Last week, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said U.S. commercial crude oil inventories increased by 3.37 million barrels for the week ending on Oct. 23, slightly below expectations of a 3.41 million barrel gain. The bullish supply report triggered a 6% surge in crude futures in last Wednesday's session.
Overnight, U.S. crude futures surged nearly 4% on Tuesday extending considerable gains over the last week, ahead of the release of the American Petroleum Institutes' weekly inventory report after the close of trading.
On the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), Brent crude for December delivery wavered between $48.87 and $50.91 a barrel before closing at $50.59, up 1.77 or 3.62% on the day. North Sea Brent crude futures moved above $50 a barrel on Tuesday for the first time since Oct. 19. Meanwhile, the spread between the international and U.S. domestic benchmarks of crude stood at $2.64, just below Monday's level of $2.65 at the close of trading.
Separately, oil services firm Baker Hughes (N:N:BHI) reported last week that the U.S. oil rig count fell by 16 over the previous week to 578, for its ninth consecutive weekly decline. At its current level, the domestic rig count is at its lowest since June, 2010. Since August, drillers nationwide have taken nearly 100 oil rigs offline, providing indications that production is about to fall sharply.
Crude prices have plunged by more than 50% over the last 15 months from last summer's peak above $100 a barrel. Production remains near record-highs in Saudi Arabia and Russia, as major oil powers appear reluctant to relinquish market share by slashing output. In August, crude futures slid below $40 a barrel to fresh six-and-a-half year lows, amid a continual glut of supply on global markets.
The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the strength of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, surged more than 0.30% to an intraday high of 97.57. Dollar-denominated commodities such as crude become more expensive for foreign purchasers when the dollar appreciates.