Crude prices rose above 64 U.S. dollars a barrel Wednesday on Iranian tensions and declining inventories in the United States.

Light, sweet crude for May delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 1.15 dollars to 64.08 a barrel.

Brent crude for May delivery rose 1.18 dollars to finish at 65. 78 dollars a barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange in London.

The U.S. Energy Department reported that crude oil inventories slipped by 900,000 barrels last week to 328.4 million barrels.

Inventories of gasoline and distillate fuel, which include heating oil and diesel fuel, also declined as traders expected. Gasoline supplies fell by 300,000 barrels to 210.2 million barrels and distillates fell by 700,000 barrels to 118.0 million barrels.

Late Tuesday, crude prices above 68 dollars a barrel on rumors that Iran had fired a missile at a U.S. ship in the Persian Gulf.

The U.S. military denied the reports with saying all ships in the Gulf had been checked and the rumors were untrue.

Still, rumors about the military conflict spurred panic buying in the trading Wednesday