Oil futures settled higher Wednesday after government data showed U.S. crude oil inventories fell more than expected last week. After an initial wobble following the data, oil returned to the upside, with February West Texas Intermediate crude on the New York Mercantile Exchange rising 53 cents, or 0.9%, to settle at $58.09 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration said U.S. crude inventories fell 6.5 million barrels in the week ended Dec. 15. Analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had forecast, on average, a decline of 3.2 million barrels.
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