Crude oil futures ended at 13-month high on Wednesday as concerns over the likely impact of last week's severe cold conditions on refinery activity in Texas outweighed official data showing an unexpected increase in US crude inventories. Data released by US Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed US crude stockpiles increased by 1.3 million barrels in the week ended February 19 compared to expectations for a drop of nearly 5 million barrels. The American Petroleum Institute's report, released on Tuesday, said crude inventories rose by 1.026 million barrels last week versus estimates for a draw of 5.2 million barrels. The oil market also shrugged off a report saying that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, collectively known as OPEC+, will likely consider increasing crude production by 500,000 barrels per day beginning in April. The OPEC+ meeting is scheduled to take place next week.
Crude oil futures for April surged $1.55 or 2.5 percent to settle at $63.22 barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. April Brent crude rose $1.67 or 2.6 percent to settle at $67.04 a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.