This week, the American Petroleum Institute (API) estimated the inventory draw for crude oil to be 3.09 million barrels.
U.S. crude inventories have shed some 68 million barrels since the beginning of the year.
In the previous week, the API reported a draw in oil inventories of 3.670 million barrels, compared to the 2.633-million-barrel draw that analysts had predicted.
Oil prices were trading up on Tuesday in the run-up to the data release, with WTI trading up 0.49% to $75.94 on the day, but up $6 per barrel on the week. Brent was trading up by 0.51% at $79.00 $72.56 on the day, and up $6.50 on the week.
U.S. oil production has been on a slow but steady climb. For the week ending December 17-the last week for which the Energy Information Administration has provided data-crude oil production in the United States came in at 11.6 million bpd-an increase of 600,000 bpd since the start of the year.
The API reported a draw in gasoline inventories of 319,000 barrels for the week ending December 24-after the previous week's 3.701-million barrel build.
Distillate stocks saw a decrease in inventory of 716,000 barrels for the week, after last week's 849,000-barrel decrease. Cushing saw a 1.594 million-barrel increase this week.
At 4:40 pm, EST, WTI was trading at $76.09, with Brent trading at $79.12.
By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com
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Julianne Geiger is a veteran editor, writer and researcher for Oilprice.com, and a member of the Creative Professionals Networking Group. More