Oil prices declined on Wednesday as unexpected builds in US crude inventories weighed on the market.

US commercial crude oil inventories, excluding those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, increased by 1.6 million barrels during the week ending Aug. 9, the US Energy Information Administration said in a report on Wednesday.

At 440.5 million barrels, US crude oil inventories were about 3 percent above the five-year average for this time of year.

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for September delivery erased 1.87 US dollars to settle at 55.23 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for October delivery lost 1.82 dollars to close at 59.48 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.