Oil Prices Perk Up Despite US Crude Oil Inventory Build

Crude oil inventories in the United States saw an increase of 1.7 million barrels during the week ending March 14, according to new data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration released on Wednesday. Crude oil prices were trading down prior to the crude data release by the U.S. Energy Information Administration after the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported on Tuesday a build of 4.593 million barrels in U.S. crude oil inventories amid a strong gasoline draw. The Brent benchmark was trading down 0.14% at 10:05 a.m. ET at $70.46 —essentially…