Oil prices up on small build in US crude stocks, Fed remarks

NEW YORK — Oil prices edged up about 1% on Wednesday on a smaller-than-expected build in US crude inventories, a big withdrawal from distillate and gasoline stocks and remarks by the US Federal Reserve chief that he still expects interest rate cuts this year.

Lower interest rates could increase oil demand by boosting economic growth.

Brent futures rose 92 cents or 1.1% to settle at $82.96 a barrel, while US crude rose 98 cents or 1.3% to settle at $79.13.

That put Brent up for the first time in five days.

The US Energy Information Administration said energy firms added a smaller-than-expected 1.4 million barrels of crude into stockpiles during the week ended March 1, while distillate and gasoline inventories fell by much more than expected.

For crude stocks, that compares with the 2.1-million-barrel build analysts forecast in a Reuters poll and the 0.4-millionbarrel build shown in data from the American Petroleum Institute, an industry group.

Energy firms also pulled 4.1 million barrels out of distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, and 4.5 million barrels out of gasoline stockpiles last week.

In remarks prepared for Congress, US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank still expects to reduce its benchmark interest rate later this year, though policy makers still needed “greater confidence” in inflation’s continued decline.

Complicating the Fed’s decision, however, were reports providing mixed signals. US private payrolls increased slightly less than expected in February, bolstering the case for rate cuts, while data showing an uptick in US economic activity from early January through late February supported the case for leaving rates unchanged.

The US dollar slipped to a one-month low against a basket of other currencies after Mr. Powell’s comments.

A weaker dollar can boost demand for oil by making the fuel cheaper for buyers using other currencies.