Despite a Large Gain in US Crude Inventories, Oil Prices Finished up 4%

The improvements come only one day after both benchmarks gained more than 6%. The oil market has fluctuated dramatically as end consumers and dealers attempted to assess the interruption in Russia's daily shipments after its invasion of Ukraine. The majority of estimates vary between one million and three million barrels per day.

"At the end of the day, the market is being driven by some of the stories coming out of Russia, which is getting more dangerous, and which continues to be a concern," said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Price Futures Group. "There is still dispute about the extent to which this will have an effect."

President Joe Biden of the United States accused Russia of genocide on Tuesday, and the United States, France, and Germany all committed to provide more weaponry. Biden included artillery systems, armored personnel carriers, and helicopters in his list.

Major global trading houses intend to cut crude and gasoline imports from Russia's state-controlled oil businesses as early as May 15, sources said, in order to avoid violating European Union sanctions on Russia, the world's second biggest crude exporter.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Moscow can simply divert energy exports away from the West. Certain nations, particularly India, have continued to purchase Russian oil at substantial discounts. 

The International Energy Agency (IEA) cut its forecast for global demand on Tuesday, claiming that increased global production may offset Russian oil supply reductions. The IEA forecasts that Russian production would fall 1.5 million barrels per day in April before increasing to close to 3 million barrels per day in May.

The White House will release 180 million barrels from US reserves over the next six months, as part of a 240 million barrels release from International Energy Agency members.

The United States' output is predicted to continue growing, from 11.8 million barrels per day today to over 12 million in 2022. Exports of refined goods hit an all-time high, as strong international demand reduced US stocks.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has said that it would be difficult to compensate for anticipated supply losses from Russia and will thus refrain from pumping more petroleum.