Crude prices ended lower on Wednesday with strong pressure from the dollar despite sharp decline of U.S. weekly crude inventories and the Federal Reserve's new stimulus measures.
The dollar rallied after the Federal Reserve announced more economy-boosting measures after the two-day policy meeting. The U. S. central bank decided to sell 400 billion dollars of short-term securities to buy longer-term holdings to keep the long-term interest low, in an effort to boost the sluggish economy.
The dollar index, which tracks the greenback's performance against a basket of six currencies, rose about 0.8 percent and weighed heavily on the dollar-denominated crude markets.
However, U.S. weekly inventories report was quite bullish. According to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. crude inventories fell sharply by 7.34 million barrels in the week ended Sept. 16, the biggest weekly drop since December. The main causes lied in the decline of imports and unexpected demand increase from refiners.
Light, sweet crude for November delivery fell 1.00 dollars, or 1.15 percent to settle at 85.92 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after trading from 85.80 dollars to 87.99 dollars. In London, Brent crude for November delivery dropped 18 cents, or 0.16 percent to close at 110.36 dollars a barrel.
