(Bloomberg) — Oil edged higher after a two-day decline as traders watched for an Israeli response to Iran’s missile attack early last week, while US crude stockpiles expanded the most since April.
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Brent traded near $77 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate was close to $74. The market remains on edge about Israel’s intentions to launch a retaliatory strike against Tehran, which has sparked fears about an all-out war. Iran has warned it’s ready to launch thousands of missiles if needed.
Oil has been jolted by the hostilities, with volatility soaring and hedge funds adding more net-long positions. President Joe Biden has discouraged an attack on Iranian oil infrastructure, and spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday for the first time in over a month.
Still, concerns over China’s economy continue to linger, and the lack of fresh major stimulus from Beijing this week prompted a broad market selloff on Tuesday, including in oil. The central government said it would hold a new briefing on fiscal policy on Saturday.
In the US, meanwhile, crude stockpiles swelled by 5.8 million barrels last week, the biggest increase since late April, according to government data released on Wednesday. Gasoline inventories dropped.
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