Oil futures ended higher Thursday, with investors shaking off a larger-than-expected rise in U.S. crude inventories.

The crude oil market continues to see a lot of noise, but at this point in time, the market is still very much in flux and is still trying to determine is we are going to see a lot of demand. Soon, I think this will be the case.

U.S. crude oil inventories increased by more than expected last week in a fourth consecutive build, while product stocks declined, according to U.S. government data.