U.S. crude oil stockpiles unexpectedly rose by 7.7 million barrels last week, lifting total commercial inventories to 426.7 million barrels for the period ended July 25, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg had expected a 2.6 million-barrel draw. The build is the largest in several months and follows a 3.2 million-barrel decline the previous week. The headline increase was accompanied by a 0.69 million-barrel rise at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery hub. Gasoline inventories fell 2.7 million barrels, while distillate stocks added 3.6 million barrels. Across crude, refined products and the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, total U.S. petroleum stocks grew by 7.3 million barrels on the week. Domestic crude production edged up 41,000 barrels a day to 13.314 million barrels a day, the highest level since late 2023. Despite the unexpected build, nationwide crude holdings remain about 6 percent below the five-year seasonal average, while distillate stocks are still 16 percent under that benchmark. West Texas Intermediate futures for September delivery traded around $69.56 a barrel, up roughly 0.5 percent in New York after the data, as traders weighed the sizeable crude build against ongoing gasoline draws and below-average overall inventories.