Oil rises for second day ahead of EIA's weekly report

Oil prices continued to rise as the US market opened on Wednesday, for the second day in a row, after the release of preliminary data that showed a drop  in the US crude inventories, and ahead of the EIA's weekly report.

US crude rose 1.3% to $71.78 a barrel, after opening at $70.83, and hit a low at $70.67, and Brent crude rose 1.4% to $74.54 a barrel, after opening at $74.54, and hit a low at $74.51.

The US crude gained 0.4% yesterday, and Brent crude rose 0.8%, in the first gain in 3 days, as most dollar-denominated commodities rose.

The American Petroleum Institute reported in preliminary data that the US crude inventories fell 6.1 million barrels during the week ending September 17, while analysts forecast a drop by 3.8 million barrels.

The total US commercial inventories fell to 418.5 million barrels, which is the lowest level since the week ending September 27, 2019, in a positive sign of the US domestic demand.

The US Energy Information Administration's official data will be released later today, amid forecasts for inventories to drop by 3.3 million barrels.

While the US output rose 100,000 barrels last week, with the total at 10.1 million barrels per day, a less-than-expected rise, as producers in the Gulf of Mexico are still suffering from Hurricane Ida's damages.