U.S. Crude Oil Futures Rise Amid Geopolitical Tensions

U.S. crude oil futures increased in post-settlement trading on Tuesday, even as the American Petroleum Institute reported a smaller-than-expected drop in domestic crude stocks, influenced by rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

Crude Oil WTI Futures, the U.S. benchmark, traded recently at $70.75 a barrel after settling up 2.4% at $69.83 a barrel. Prices were buoyed by fears of supply disruptions, following Iran's missile attack on Israel, which has vowed retaliation.

For the week ending Sept. 27, U.S. crude inventories fell by about 1.46 million barrels, diverging from the previous week’s reported draw of 4.3 million barrels. Economists had anticipated a decline of about 2.1 million barrels.

Additionally, gasoline stockpiles rose by approximately 909,000 barrels, while distillate inventories, including diesel and heating oil, dropped by 2.67 million barrels.

The official government inventory report is expected on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. EST (1530 GMT).