Oil prices edged up from seven-week lows below $47 a barrel this afternoon as US crude oil inventories grew again ahead of winter but heating oil stocks fell.
US light crude hit a low of $46.96 before rising 18 cents to $47.55 a barrel, 14% below its all-time high reached two weeks ago. London Brent was up 49 cents at $44.20.
The US Energy Information Administration said today that commercial crude oil inventories rose by 1.8 million barrels last week to 291.5 million, the seventh straight weekly gain.
US crude stockpiles have climbed 12 million barrels over the past three weeks as Gulf of Mexico production recovers from September's Hurricane Ivan.
Distillate stocks, which include heating oil, fell by 100,000 barrels to 115.6 million, 13% below last year, the EIA said. Refinery runs were up 3.2% to 92.6% as plants emerged from seasonal maintenance.
The International Energy Agency said earlier today that rising world supplies and signs that higher energy costs are hurting economic growth suggest oil's long price surge may finally have peaked.
'Barring any major unforeseen developments, oil markets should continue to ease heading into and out of the winter,' the IEA said in its monthly Oil Market Report.
