Oil futures settled higher Dec. 30 on the heels of a larger-than-expected US inventory draw. NYMEX February WTI settled 40 cents higher at $48.40/b, and ICE January Brent climbed 25 cents to settle at $51.34/b. US commercial crude oil inventories declined 6.06 million barrels to 493.47 million barrels during the week ended Dec. 25, US Energy Information Administration data showed Dec. 30. The draw comes as exports surged nearly 17% on the week to a 3.63 million b/d, the highest since the week ended March 20. American Petroleum Institute released late Dec. 29 showed US crude inventories fell 4.8 million barrels last week, while analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts on […]