Crude oil futures end lower on Wednesday despite data showing a larger than expected drop in crude inventories in the week ended November 29. Data from the Energy Information Administration said crude oil inventories tumbled by 5.1 million barrels last week after falling by 1.8 million barrels in the previous week. Street had expected crude oil inventories to dip by 1.0 million barrels. Meanwhile, it said gasoline inventories rose by 2.4 million barrels last week but remain about 4% below the five-year average for this time of year. Distillate fuel inventories, which include heating oil and diesel, also increased by 3.4 million barrels last week but are about 5% below the five-year average for this time of year.
Benchmark crude oil futures for January delivery fell by $1.40 or about 2 percent to settle at $68.54 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for February delivery dropped $1.31 or about 1.77 percent to settle at $72.31 a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.