Crude oil futures ended lower on Wednesday amid concerns about the outlook for demand from China due to rising Covid-19 cases. Further, resumption of Russian oil shipments to Hungary via the Druzhba pipeline weighed as well. Supply to certain parts of Eastern and Central Europe via the pipeline had been suspended on Tuesday for technical reasons. Besides, oil prices dropped despite data showing a larger-than-expected drop in crude inventories in the US. Data released by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed crude inventories dropped by 5.4 million barrels in the week ended November 11 versus expectations for a decline of 440,000 barrels.
Benchmark crude oil futures for December delivery fell $1.33 or about 1.5 percent at $85.59 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for January delivery dropped $1.00 or about 1.07 percent to settle at $92.86 a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.