Investing.com - Oil prices edged lower in Europe trade on Thursday, after weekly stockpile data showed that U.S. oil inventories rose to an all-time high last week, underlining concerns over ample supplies.
Crude oil for April delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange shed 46 cents, or 1.43%, to trade at $31.69 a barrel by 08:10GMT, or 3:10AM ET. A day earlier, New York-traded oil futures reversed losses of more than 2% to end up 28 cents, or 0.88%.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said Wednesday that U.S. crude stockpiles increased by 3.5 million barrels last week to an all-time high of 507.6 million barrels, underlining concerns over a domestic supply glut.
Supplies at Cushing, Oklahoma, the key delivery point for Nymex crude, rose by 333,000 barrels last week, raising fears that the nation's largest storage facility is nearing full capacity.
Losses were limited as the data pointed to strong demand for oil supplies, such as gasoline and distillates.
Gasoline inventories fell 2.2 million barrels last week, compared to expectations for a drop of 1.0 million barrels, while distillate stockpiles declined by 1.7 million barrels.
U.S. oil prices are down nearly 17% so far this year as a domestic supply glut dragged down prices.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for April delivery slumped 50 cents, or 1.45%, to trade at $33.91 a barrel amid doubts over the likelihood of a collective supply cut happening anytime soon.
Hopes for a supply cut dimmed this week after Saudi Arabia and Iran dismissed the possibility of reducing or freezing output.
Oil futures are down nearly 70% since the summer of 2014. Global crude production is outpacing demand following a boom in U.S. shale oil and after a decision by OPEC last year not to cut production in order to defend market share.
Meanwhile, Brent's premium to the West Texas Intermediate crude contract stood at $2.22 a barrel, compared to a gap of $2.26 by close of trade on Wednesday.