Investing.com -- U.S. crude futures surged more than 6% on Wednesday, enjoying one of its strongest one-day move in two months, amid bullish supply data which revealed a lower than expected inventory build last week.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, WTI crude for December delivery traded in a broad range between $43.07 and $46.00 a barrel, before settling at $45.86, up 2.66 or 6.16% on the session. It marked the most productive session for Texas Long Sweet futures since late-August when U.S. crude futures soared 27% over a three-day period. Over the last month of trading, WTI crude has gained approximately 0.80% in value.
On the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), brent crude for December delivery wavered between $46.62 and $49.23 a barrel, before closing at $49.04, up 2.23 or 4.76% on the day. With the productive session, brent futures ended a four-day losing streak. North Sea brent crude is now up by more than 1.5% over the last month. Meanwhile, the spread between the international and U.S. domestic benchmarks of crude stood at $3.18, below Tuesday's level of $3.61 at the close of trading.
On Wednesday morning, 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. It also came one day after the American Petroleum Institute reported an increase of 4.1 million barrels last week. At 480.0 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories remain near levels not seen for this time of year in at least 80 years.
U.S. crude production inched up 16,000 barrels to 9.112 million bpd. Crude output remains sharply below its level from this spring when it surged above 9.6 million bpd to reach its highest level in more than 40 years. Total motor gasoline inventories decreased by 1.1 million barrels last week, while distillate fuel inventories fell by 3.0 million barrels. Crude prices worldwide are down more than 40% since OPEC roiled global markets last November with its decision to keep its production ceiling above 30 million barrels per day. The strategy was aimed at crowding out U.S. shale producers in an effort to regain market share. As a result, oil prices have plunged amid a glut of oversupply.
The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the strength of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, fell more than 0.40% to an intraday low of 96.52 ahead of the release. Dollar-denominated commodities such as crude become more expensive for foreign purchasers when the dollar appreciates.