04:42 PM EST, 01/15/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Commercial crude stockpiles in the US posted a bigger draw than projected last week, government data showed Wednesday, while oil prices rallied as markets evaluated two other oil market reports.

Inventories of crude, excluding the strategic petroleum reserve, declined by 2 million barrels to 412.7 million barrels through the week ended Friday, the Energy Information Administration said. The consensus was for a decline of 850,000 barrels, according to a Bloomberg poll.

Refineries operated at 91.7% capacity, down from 93.3% the week earlier.

Propane and propylene inventories fell by 4.7 million barrels last week. Total motor gasoline stocks jumped by 5.9 million barrels while distillate fuel added 3.1 million barrels. Total commercial petroleum inventories declined by 3.4 million barrels, the EIA's data showed.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil climbed 3.7% at $79.17 a barrel in Wednesday late-afternoon trade, while Brent was up 3.2% to $82.50.

The International Energy Agency lowered its 2025 global oil demand growth expectations to 1.05 million barrels per day from 1.1 million barrels previously estimated, the agency said in its monthly oil market report released Wednesday. The IEA revised up its estimated world oil consumption growth for 2024 to 940,000 barrels a day from 840,000 barrels. The body expects oil supply gains to outpace demand expansion in 2025.

"Benchmark crude oil prices rallied in early January as US sanctions on Iran and Russia intensified and freezing temperatures swept across large parts of the Northern Hemisphere," the IEA said.

Separately, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said Wednesday that it held steady its forecast for a 1.4-million-barrel-per-day rise in demand this year, compared with the 1.1-million barrels per day in supply gains it forecast outside of the cartel comprising OPEC and non-OPEC members.

"This robust oil demand growth is expected to continue in 2026," the OPEC said.