Oil prices settled little changed on Wednesday as investors weighed potential progress toward Russia-Ukraine peace talks against declining U.S. crude inventories and continued tensions in the Middle East. Brent crude futures settled up 3 cents, or 0.03%, at $108.82 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 67 cents, or 0.7%, to $97.15 a barrel. Both benchmarks had gained more than $2 earlier in the session before retreating from recent highs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hopes for renewed Russia-Ukraine peace talks weighed on prices as Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to resume U.S.-mediated negotiations as soon as next month. A potential peace agreement could ease restrictions on Russian energy supplies and improve global diesel availability. However, continued attacks on vessels near the Strait of Hormuz and a lack of progress toward U.S.-Iran dialogue sustained concerns about potential supply disruptions. Iran maintained that it was prepared to defend itself and rejected the prospect of negotiations while the U.S. continued its blockade and threats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
U.S. crude inventories fell by 3.06 million barrels to 412.5 million barrels for the week ended October 16, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), exceeding analysts’ expectations for a draw of 820,000 barrels. However, distillate inventories, which include diesel and heating oil, increased by 1.68 million barrels to 104.3 million barrels, defying expectations for a decline of 1.16 million barrels. The U.S. Department of Energy also announced plans to loan nearly one-third of the nation’s 1-million-barrel emergency heating oil reserve to help contain prices amid ongoing fuel supply concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n