Crude prices rise as US supplies grow less-than-expected

Crude prices advanced Wednesday as government report showed that U.S. inventories increased less than expected.

For the week ended Oct. 24, nationwide crude stockpiles in the United States increased 2 million barrels to 379.7 million, lower than market expectation, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for WTI, gained 800,000 barrels to 21.4 million.

After its two-day policy meeting, the Fed declared the end of a six-year-old asset-purchase program, which contained some 3.5 trillion U.S. dollars of purchasing Treasury bonds and mortgage securities to encourage investment in the country.

The Fed said, U.S. economy continues to grow at a "moderate" pace and that "labor-market conditions improved somewhat further, with solid job gains and a lower unemployment rate."

The encouraging remarks from Fed and rising consumer confidence in the U.S. helped support crude prices.

U.S. consumer confidence rebounded in October to hit the highest level in seven years, the New York-based research group Conference Board said Tuesday in a report.

Light, sweet crude for December delivery moved up 78 cents to settle at 82.2 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for December delivery gained 1.09 dollars to close at 87.12 dollars a barrel.