Oil adds to gains after EIA inventories report (by Claudia Assis)
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Crude-oil futures added to gains Thursday after a weekly inventories report showed a smaller-than-expected increase in supplies. Crude for April delivery (CLJ11) added 99 cents to $99.15 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It had earlier traded at $98.86 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration reported oil inventories rose by 800,000 barrels in the week ended Feb. 18. Analysts polled by Platts had seen an increase by 1.4 million barrels. Gasoline inventories declined 2.8 million barrels, the EIA said; gasoline stocks were seen up 950,000 barrels. Stocks of distillates, which include heating oil and diesel, decreased 1.3 million barrels. The analysts surveyed by Platts had expected a decline by 1.7 million barrels.