By 03 25 ET, the U.S. crude futures traded 0.2  higher at $72.35 a barrel, while the Brent contract climbed 0.1  to $77.70 a barrel. Investing.com - European stock markets edged largely lower Wednesday amid caution ahead of key U.S. inflation data, even after the release of better-than-expected French industrial production. Oil prices edged higher Wednesday, extending the recent rebound as Middle East supply disruptions persisted while industry data pointed to mixed U.S. inventories. Data from the American Petroleum Institute, released late Tuesday, showed that U.S. crude stockpiles fell by a larger-than-expected 5.2 million barrels in the week to January 5.But the API data also showed another week of strong builds in gasoline and distillates inventories, raising doubts over demand from the world s largest fuel consumer. Elsewhere, Australian inflation took a further move lower, which brings Thursday's U.S. consumer prices in focus, where a slowdown is also anticipated and needed to avoid a sharp selloff given a series of U.S. rate cuts are priced in for this year.
Oil prices rose on Wednesday due to ongoing supply disruptions in the Middle East and mixed US inventory data. European stock markets declined ahead of key US inflation data, which is expected to show a slowdown.