Oil prices strengthened slightly ahead of the settlement Wednesday as the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady and expressed confidence that a recent rise in inflation would be sustained. The Fed’s rate-setting committee also downplayed a recent slowdown in economic and job growth, saying that activity had been expanding at a moderate rate and job gains, on average, had been strong in recent months. Oil demand is closely tied to broader indicators of economic growth. Earlier in the session, the market shrugged off a surprise build in U.S. crude inventories because the move was largely concentrated on the U.S. West Coast. Crude stockpiles posted a surprise build of 6.2 million barrels in the week, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. [EIA/S]. Nearly 5 million barrels were concentrated on the West Coast. “That’s why the market isn’t reacting that much, because sometimes the West Coast […]