U.S. crude oil futures’ discount to Brent, one of the biggest plays in oil, widened to more than $5 a barrel for the first time in three weeks on Wednesday after U.S. government data showed a surprise inventory build. Crude stockpiles in the United States rose 2.4 million barrels last week, the first weekly rise since April, after analysts in a Reuters poll had forecast a 2 million-barrel draw. Inventories at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery point for U.S. futures, also known as West Texas Intermediate (WTI), rose 123,000 barrels, another unexpected build. “The bottom line is the overall U.S. stock build is weighing on heavily on WTI, and the Cushing build is adding to that,” said Tariq Zahir, an oil trader and managing member at Tyche Capital Advisors in Laurel Hollow, New York. One of the most popular trades betting on the volatile fluctuations between […]