Oil falls as U.S. crude inventories reportedly rise, traders weigh Saudi pipeline closure

Oil prices fell on Wednesday. An unexpected increase in US crude inventories contributed to the decline. This outweighed concerns over supply disruptions following an attack on Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline.

The attack, which was backed by Iran, led to worries about potential supply disruptions. However, according to Investing.com, US crude inventories rose by 7.1 million barrels in the week ended September 11. This was contrary to analysts' expectations of a draw of about 1.6 million barrels.

Gasoline and distillate inventories also increased, according to market sources citing data from the American Petroleum Institute. Despite this, Haitong Futures noted that regional stock increases do not change the underlying tightness in the global crude market. Oil prices had risen more than $3 on Tuesday, reaching their highest levels since May 19, due to supply concerns after Saudi Arabia suspended oil loadings at its Yanbu port.

Brief written by urgent.news from CNBC, CNBC World, Investing.com — 3 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.