Mubasher: US crude oil inventories rose by 3.8 million barrels to 408.7 million barrels in the week ended 27 July, as shown by the data of the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The buildup in the US inventories came to the surprise of analysts, who expected a fall of 2.4 million barrels, according to a survey by S&P Global Platts.

Moreover, the industry group data by American Petroleum Institute (API) on Tuesday reported a rise of 5.6 million barrels.

Total motor gasoline stockpiles jumped by 2.5 million barrels, and distillate fuel increased by 3 million barrels, the EIA said.

US crude refinery inputs reached an average 17.5 million barrels per day (bpd) during the week, 195,000 bpd more than the previous week’s average, as refineries operated at 96.1% of their operating capacity last week.

US crude imports reached an average of 7.7 million bpd for the same week, down by 21,000 bpd from the week before.

By 2:36 pm GMT, US Nymex futures fell 1.29% to $67.87 per barrel (pb), while international Brent crude futures dropped 1.66% to $72.98 pb.