Oil rises on US crude storage draw, China imports show year-on-year gain

* U.S. crude stockpiles fall, products post surprise build,
EIA
says

* China April oil imports rise 5.45% from a year ago

May 9 (Reuters) – Oil prices rose on Thursday as falling
U.S. crude inventories amid rising refinery intake and a
year-on-year increase in Chinese imports last month supported
higher demand expectations for the world’s two largest crude
consuming nations.

Brent crude futures for July rose 31 cents, or 0.4%,
to $83.89 a barrel by 0533 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate
crude for June was up 39 cents, or 0.5% to $79.38 per
barrel.

“Oil markets were buoyed by a larger-than-expected draw in
the U.S. inventory data. The improved China’s trade balance data
added to the upside momentum,” said Tina Teng, an independent
market analyst, adding that crude prices may continue to track
economic factors looking ahead.

Crude inventories in the U.S., the world’s biggest oil user,
dropped last week by 1.4 million barrels to 459.5 million
barrels, according to the Energy Information Administration,
more than analysts’ expectations for a 1.1 million-barrel draw.
Stockpiles fell as refinery activity increased by 307,000
barrels per day (bpd) in the period.

This caused gasoline stocks to swell by more than 900,000
barrels to 228 million barrels, while distillate stockpiles
including diesel and heating oil rose by 600,000 barrels to
116.4 million barrels.

“The market shrugged off the builds in gasoline and
distillate fuels as refiners ramp up for the upcoming driving
season,” analysts at ANZ Research said in a note on Thursday.

Shipments

of crude in April to China, the world’s biggest oil
importer, were 44.72 million metric tons, or about 10.88 million
bpd, according to China’s customs data released on Thursday.
That was up 5.45% from the relatively low 10.4 million bpd
imported in April 2023.

Hopes for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict Gaza
kept oil prices from moving higher. The U.S. said earlier in the
week that negotiations should be able to close the gaps between
Israel and Hamas.

“While there may be some short-term relief for oil
prices, it may be difficult to return to April’s high above the
$90 per barrel level, where geopolitical tensions were at its
peak,” said Yeap Jun Rong, market strategist at IG.

(Reporting by Laila Kearney in New York and Emily Chow in
Singapore; Editing by Stephen Coates and Christian Schmollinger)