Oil prices fell in volatile trading as investors watched for developments in talks to end the US-Israeli war with Iran. Brent dropped 1.44% to $102.11 a barrel and US crude fell 0.93% to $95.20, while US crude inventories unexpectedly declined by 5.27 million barrels.
Brent futures fell $1.49, or 1.44%, to $102.11 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures lost 89 cents, or 0.93%, to $95.20 at 1155 GMT. Both contracts had risen by $1 earlier in the session.
Investors awaited Washington's next move in the US-Israeli war with Iran after Democrats captured control of both chambers of Congress in the midterm elections. Analysts said expectations that President Donald Trump might move on from Iran weighed on oil, though uncertainty remained over whether peace talks would produce a deal. Trump said the United States had no immediate plans to strike Iran, while a senior Iranian official said the two countries remained far from an agreement.
Gulf exports of crude, condensate and refined products, excluding LPG, averaged 17.1 million barrels per day in October, down from 18.9 million in September and around three-quarters of pre-war levels. US crude stocks fell 5.27 million barrels in the week ended October 30, market sources said, compared with analysts' expectations for an increase of about 880,000 barrels. Official US inventory data was due later on Wednesday.
