Crude oil futures settled sharply lower on Wednesday after data showed a sharp increase in U.S. crude stockpiles and a significant jump in crude production. According to the data released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), crude stockpiles in the U.S. increased by 17.5 million barrels in the last two weeks. Crude stocks rose by 3.6 million barrels last week to 421.9 million barrels, twice the expected increase. The EIA data also showed U.S. crude production was at a record 13.2 million barrels per day. Meanwhile, gasoline stocks dropped by 1.5 million barrels to 215.7 million barrels, while distillate stockpiles decreased 1.4 million barrels to 106.6 million barrels.
Benchmark crude oil futures for December delivery fell $1.60 or 2 percent to settle at $76.66 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for January delivery dropped $1.29 or 1.56 percent to settle at $81.18 a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.