U.S. oil price retreats on rising inventories

NEW YORK, May 23 (Xinhua) -- U.S. oil price decreased on Wednesday as official data showed the country's crude stockpiles climbed unexpectedly.

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for July delivery decreased 0.36 U.S. dollar to settle at 71.84 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for July delivery was up 0.23 dollar to close at 79.80 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

The Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report on Wednesday that U.S. commercial crude inventories surged by 5.8 million barrels in the week through May 18, which surprised the market as most analysts had expected a decline.

Meanwhile, oil prices still lingered near three-year highs as geopolitical worries continued to support the market.

Geopolitical concerns that U.S. sanctions on Iran could reduce the country's crude supplies have led oil prices to surge in recent weeks. The market is now weighing the possibility of additional U.S. sanctions on Venezuela following the country's presidential election. Enditem