U.S. commercial crude oil stockpiles fell last week for the first time since January, according to data released Wednesday morning by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). The 700,000-barrel drop surprised analysts, who had been expecting a 4.1 million-barrel increase, according to a Reuters poll.
However, the news didn't have much of an impact on benchmark WTI Crude prices, which spiked briefly on the news to above $26 a barrel, but retreated throughout the rest of the morning as concerns about potential spikes in coronavirus infections worried investors.
Stocks of independent U.S. oil exploration and production companies (E&Ps) like ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP), EOG Resources (NYSE: EOG), and Marathon Oil (NYSE: MRO) didn't see a benefit, either: All opened lower and sank further throughout the morning.