LONDON (SHARECAST) - Crude oil prices settled at a one-year high on Wednesday, marching above $81 a barrel, after weekly government supply data and as Wall Street enjoyed gains until the last hour of trading.
Crude for December delivery, the new front-month contract, rose $2.25 to $81.37 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, a one year closing high.
Data from the Energy Information Administration showed crude inventories rose 1.3m barrels in the week ended 16 October against forecasts of a 2.2m barrel increase as import levels fell.
The EIA also showed than a larger than expected 2.3m barrel decline in gasoline stocks last week.
Early gains on Wall Street, prompted by another rush of third quarter earnings, and a weak dollar also spurred demand for the black stuff.
Among precious metals gold continued its march higher as the dollar hit new lows against the euro. Gold for December delivery increased $5.9 to settle at $1,064.5 an ounce.
Silver for December added 27 cents to $17.825 an ounce while copper for December increased 10 cents to settle at $3.04 a pound.
