The American Petroleum Institute released its weekly inventories data on Wednesday according to which crude oil stock piles surged 3.6 million barrels for the week ending February 17^th, 2012. API reported the increase of 314,000 barrels in gasoline inventories for the respective week while distillates inventories which include heating oil and diesel surged by 630,000 barrels for the week.

Analysts were expecting the crude oil inventories to gain by 1.7 million barrels while gasoline supplies were projected to decrease by 450,000 barrels. Analysts on average were expecting distillates inventories decrease by 1.8 million barrels.

Crude oil futures contract for March delivery jumped to $106.28 per barrel on Wednesday’s session of the New York Mercantile Exchange.