Crude oil futures ended lower on Wednesday, magnifying their previous session’s losses, after data showed a surprise surge in US crude inventories. Data released by US Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed crude oil inventories in the US rose by 4.345 million barrels last week, as against expectations for a draw of 1.375 million barrels. The EIA data also showed that distillate stock piles increased by 0.332 million barrels in the week, compared to expectations for a drop of 1.826 million barrels, while gasoline inventories dropped by 3.616 million barrels, more than twice the expected decline of 1.579 million barrels.
Benchmark crude oil futures for April delivery fell $1.40 or 1.5 percent to settle at $95.04 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for May delivery dropped $1.74 or 1.7 percent to settle at $94.70 a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.