Investing.com -- Crude oil inventories fell for a second-straight week, according to the American Petroleum Institute.
The industry group estimated that stockpiles fell another 8.6 million barrels for the week ending August 1, after falling more than 6.8 million barrels the prior week. The estimate was looking for a decline of 3.3 million barrels.
Crude Oil WTI Futures, the U.S. benchmark, rose 1.4% on Tuesday to $41.55 a barrel, and Brent Oil Futures crude, the international standard, rose 0.48%, to $44.35. Traders have been looking for signs that demand was returning to the market. The industry data comes out a day before the government's own report. The Energy Information Administration is scheduled to report last week's crude and distillate inventory on Wednesday at 10:30 AM ET (1430 GMT).
Currently, the estimate for EIA inventory is a draw of 3 million barrels last week, coming after a massive 10.6 million barrel draw the prior week.