WTI fails to hold above $21, clings to modest daily gains

• US Pres. Trump will reportedly meet with oil CEOs to help industry.
• EIA's weekly report highlights falling fuel demand in US.
• Saudi Arabia's oil supply rose above 12 million barrels per day.

Crude oil prices gained traction in the US afternoon and the barrel of West Texas Intermediate rose to a daily high of $21.20 but struggled to preserve its bullish momentum. As of writing, the WTI was trading at $20.40, adding 1.75% on a daily basis.

Huge build-up in US crude oil inventories

Earlier in the day, the weekly data published by the US Energy Information Administration revealed that crude oil inventories increased by 13.8 million barrels in the week ending March 27th to weigh on the WTI. More importantly, the underlying details of the report showed total products supplied in the same period, a gauge of fuel demand in the US, declined by 1.6 million barrels to reflect the negative impact of the lockdowns.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday reported that US President Donald Trump was planning to meet with oil executives later this week to come up with a plan to aid the industry.

According to unidentified sources, imposing tariffs on oil imports from Saudi Arabia was among the options. Reuters on Wednesday reported that Saudi Arabia's crude oil supply rose to more than 12 million barrels per day.

Technical levels to watch for