Investing.com -- U.S crude oil futures rose in post-settlement trading Tuesday after the American Petroleum Institute reported domestic crude stocks fell more than expected last week, stoking optimism that the seasonal rise in summer demand is finally underway.
Crude Oil WTI Futures, the U.S. benchmark, traded at $78.25 a barrel following the report after settling up 0.2% at $77.90 a barrel.
U.S. crude inventories fell by about 2.4M barrels for the week ended Jun. 7, compared with a build of 4M barrels reported by the API for the previous week. Economists were expecting a decrease of 1.8M barrels.
The inventory data stoked further optimism that traditional energy demand over the summer months is underway following a slow start.
The API data also showed that gasoline stockpiles decreased by 2.5M barrels, while distillate inventories -- the class of fuels that includes diesel and heating oil -- increased by 972,000 barrels.
The official government inventory report is due Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. EST (1530 GMT).
Oil prices settled higher Tuesday, underpinned by a stronger demand outlook, though concerns that the Federal Reserve may deliver a hawkish on Wednesday pause kept gains in check.