WTI falls below $72.50 following a sharp rise in US crude inventories

• WTI price depreciated after the API's report showed a sharp increase in US crude inventories.
• Weekly Crude Oil Stock rose to 9.04 million barrels in the previous week--the largest increase in a year.
• Crude Oil prices may find support as supply concerns intensify due to escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Oil price snaps a three-day winning streak, trading around $72.40 per barrel during European hours on Wednesday. The decline follows the American Petroleum Institute's (API) report revealing a sharp increase in US crude inventories.

The API reported a surge of 9.04 million barrels in Weekly Crude Oil Stock for the week ending February 7, significantly exceeding the expected 2.8 million barrel build--the largest increase in a year.

Market sentiment remains cautious due to escalating trade tensions and broader economic uncertainty. Concerns have grown over the impact of US President Donald Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs, which could disrupt Oil drilling operations that rely on specialty steel not produced domestically.

However, crude Oil prices may find support amid growing supply concerns driven by geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that the ceasefire would end, and Israel would resume "intense fighting" in Gaza if Hamas fails to release hostages by Saturday noon, as reported by the BBC. Meanwhile, US President Trump urged Israel to break the ceasefire if hostages were not returned by the weekend.

Further limiting losses, concerns over Russian and Iranian Oil supplies persist due to ongoing sanctions. US measures imposed last month on tankers, producers, and insurers have disrupted Russian Oil shipments to China and India. Additionally, new sanctions target networks facilitating Iranian Oil exports to China as part of Trump's renewed "maximum pressure" campaign.