Oil prices eased slightly on Wednesday, retreating after climbing more than 1% in the previous session on concerns over potential disruptions to Russian supplies.
Brent crude futures slipped by 8 cents, or 0.1%, to \$68.39 a barrel as of 7:30 a.m. WAT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell by 6 cents, or 0.1%, to \$64.46 a barrel.
Both benchmarks had settled over 1% higher on Tuesday following reports that Russia’s oil pipeline monopoly, Transneft, had warned producers they may need to cut output after a series of Ukrainian drone attacks on key export ports and refineries, according to three industry sources cited by Reuters.
Investors are also closely watching the outcome of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s September 16–17 policy meeting, where a widely expected 25-basis-point interest rate cut could stimulate economic activity and fuel demand. The meeting will feature new governor Stephen Miran, a former Trump administration official, while ongoing efforts by former President Donald Trump to remove policymaker Lisa Cook add to the political backdrop.
Meanwhile, preliminary data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) showed that U.S. crude and gasoline inventories declined last week, while distillate stocks increased. Crude stocks reportedly dropped by 3.42 million barrels, gasoline inventories fell by 691,000 barrels, and distillate inventories rose by 1.91 million barrels for the week ending September 12.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) is expected to release its official inventory data later on Wednesday. Analysts polled by Reuters forecast crude inventories to have fallen by about 900,000 barrels, with distillate stockpiles rising by around 1 million barrels and gasoline inventories edging up by about 100,000 barrels.
