WTI crude down drops ten bounces after the numbers
The 3.42 million build in gasoline inventories was the largest since January and it comes as summer driving season is beginning to wind down. The hope was the lighter production, lower imports and strong demand would eat into record inventories but it hasn't really materialized on any front, although demand is near record highs.
WTI fell to $49.00 from $49.50 on the headlines but has chopped back to $49.40.
Here's a great chart, from Bloomberg, showing where total US energy inventories are compared to the high, average and low over the past 5 years. So while they're not at extremes, they're far above normal.