WTI oil futures soar 4% after bullish U.S. supply reportInvesting.com - West Texas Intermediate oil futures extended strong gains on Wednesday, after data showed that oil supplies in the U.S. rose less than expected last week, easing concerns over weak demand. Crude oil for delivery in December on the New York Mercantile Exchange surged $1.70, or 3.94%, to trade at $44.90 a barrel during U.S. morning hours. Prices were at around $44.57 prior to the release of the inventory data. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that crude oil inventories rose by 3.37 million barrels in the week ended October 23. Market analysts' expected a crude-stock rise of 3.41 million barrels, while the American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday reported an increase of 4.1 million barrels. Total U.S. crude oil inventories stood at 480.0 million barrels as of last week, remaining near levels not seen for this time of year in at least the last 80 years. The report also showed that gasoline inventories decreased by 1.1 million barrels, compared to expectations for a decline of 0.9 million barrels. Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for December delivery jumped $1.43, or 3.07%, to trade at $48.24 a barrel. A day earlier, Brent prices fell to $46.41, the lowest since September 15, as ongoing worries over the health of the global economy fueled concerns that a global supply glut may stick around for longer than anticipated. The oil market has been volatile in recent months amid uncertainty about how quickly the global glut of crude is set to shrink. Despite this tighter outlook for North America, output remains robust in other countries. According to industry research group Baker Hughes (N:BHI), the number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. decreased by one last week to 594, the eighth straight weekly decline. However, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf OPEC members have indicated in recent months that they will continue to stick to their policy of defending market share by keeping production high. Oil prices have lost nearly 60% since last summer as lingering concerns over a glut in world markets drove down prices.