(MENAFN- AFP) Crude prices rallied Wednesday as data revealed falls to energy inventories in the United States, the world's biggest consumer of oil -- helping to ease market concerns about a supply glut.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex), a barrel of WTI crude for delivery in October jumped $2.46 to $47.05 compared with Tuesday's close.
In late London deals, Brent North Sea crude for November delivery shot higher to $49.79 a barrel on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), a gain of $2.04.
The US Department of Energy said commercial crude stockpiles dropped by 2.1 million barrels last week, confounding analyst expectations for a rise by a similar amount.
Oil prices had won support already ahead of the data after private industry group American Petroleum Institute also calculated a drop in inventories.
Traders' attention was focused also on a decision Thursday of the US Federal Reserve on the timing for an interest rate increase.
Some analysts are expecting a rate hike to come this month while others are predicting it to happen in December.
Interest is keen in the oil market on a Fed decision because a raise in the benchmark federal funds rate from zero, where it has been pegged since 2008, could boost the greenback, making dollar-priced crude oil more expensive in other currencies and possibly weighing on demand and prices.
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