API data reportedly show a weekly fall of more than 4 million barrels in U.S. crude supplies

The American Petroleum Institute reported late Tuesday that U.S. crude supplies fell by 4.1 million barrels for the week ended July 9, according to sources. The API report also reportedly showed a decline of nearly 1.6 million barrels for gasoline stockpiles and an increase of 3.7 million barrels for distillate inventories. Crude stocks at the Cushing, Okla., storage hub, meanwhile, edged down by 1.6 million barrels for the week, sources said. Inventory data from the Energy Information Administration will be released Wednesday. On average, the EIA is expected to show crude inventories declined by 4.9 million barrels, according to a survey of analysts conducted by S&P Global Platts. The survey also calls for a supply decrease of 1.6 million barrels for gasoline and inventory climb of 1.3 million barrels for distillates. August West Texas Intermediate crude was at $75.17 barrel in electronic trading, after settling Tuesday at $75.25 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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