WTI crude oil is trading bullish, with prices rising as oil companies in the Gulf of Mexico secured their operations ahead of Hurricane Delta making landfall, even though weak demand limits gains. At the time of writing, WTI crude oil is trading at around $39.90 per barrel.

Hurricane Delta is expected to turn into a Category 3 storm, driving oil companies in the region to evacuate personnel from their offshore rigs, bringing down oil output by almost 1.5 million bpd. The reduction in oil supply due to the storm is lending support to crude oil prices for now.

During the previous session, US oil prices had lost around 1.8% of their value after White House officials confirmed President Trump’s statements that the next round of fiscal stimulus measures will only be rolled out after the November 3 elections. Absence of financial aid to prop up the economy is likely to keep oil demand weak as it hinders economic recovery.

Oil prices were mostly unaffected by the release of the EIA report on Wednesday which revealed a larger than expected decline in gasoline stockpiles in the US. While distillate stockpiles also registered a fall during the previous week, crude inventories in the US increased by 501k barrels, exerting more pressure on crude oil.