Crude oil rises due to drastic decline in US crude oil inventories

WTI crude oil futures on Wednesday rose towards $79 per barrel after recovering losses from the previous market due to a sharp decline in US crude oil inventories.

Crude oil inventories for the week ending 8/13 announced by API fell 5.2 million5,000 barrels, which exceeded the 2 million barrel decrease expected by the market, and it was a drastic decline since the week ending 6/28.

Also, in response to reports that Iran rejected Western countries seeking to refrain from retaliation, the market predicted that Iran's response to Israel was imminent, so potential oil supply risks in the Middle East also continued to support the market price.

Meanwhile, the IEA maintained its forecast for oil demand growth in 2024 and 2025 to be less than 1 million barrels per day due to sluggish consumption in China.

The market is currently awaiting Wednesday's US Consumer Price Index (CPI) announcement.

Expected interest rate cuts could boost economic activity and oil demand.