Crude oil slipped to about $104 a barrel on Wednesday, pulling back after two straight sessions of gains as evidence of rising US inventories pressured prices. The American Petroleum Institute reported a 7.1 million-barrel increase in US crude stockpiles last week, along with higher gasoline and distillate inventories. Official government figures are due later in the day.
Even so, supply concerns remain pronounced. Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline is still offline, though US Energy Secretary Chris Wright indicated the outage is expected to last only a few days. At the same time, Iran-backed Houthi militants are advancing toward the Bab el-Mandeb Strait while stepping up attacks on Saudi targets and key regional shipping lanes. The resulting disruption has reportedly led Saudi Aramco to delay some deliveries to European customers, intensifying competition for alternative sources of supply. Libya has also experienced a production halt, further adding to market uncertainty.
