February WTI crude oil (CLG26) on Wednesday closed down -0.53 (-0.91%), and February RBOB gasoline (RBG26) closed down -0.0180 (-1.04%).
Crude oil and gasoline prices gave up an early advance and retreated on Wednesday on a mostly bearish weekly EIA inventory report. Also, Wednesday's rally in the dollar index (DXY00) to a 1-week high was negative for energy prices. Persistent geopolitical risks from Venezuela, Nigeria, and Russia are limiting crude price losses. Also, expectations that OPEC+ will stick with plans to pause further crude production increases are supportive for crude prices.
