Oil prices rose on May 18 as traders bought into risky assets on optimism about U.S. debt-ceiling talks, largely ignoring a bearish EIA report.
U.S. crude inventories rose by more than 5 million barrels last week, the biggest weekly increase since January.
Today’s trading behavior sort of proves that fundamentals are really taking the backseat,” said Rebecca Babin, senior energy trader at CIBC Private Wealth.
“The EIA data was underwhelming, but crude prices are still on the rise as the risk tone shapes the macro trading environment.”