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SINGAPORE: Oil rose to a nine-month high on Thursday after government data showed a drop in US crude stocks last week, while progress toward a US fiscal stimulus deal and strong Asian demand as well. drove prices up.
The US dollar also hit a two-and-a-half-year low against major rivals on Thursday. Oil prices generally rise when the dollar falls because dollar-priced crude becomes cheaper for buyers who hold other currencies.
Brent crude futures were up 72 cents, or 1.4%, to $ 51.80 a barrel at 0744 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up 71 cents, or 1.5 %, at $ 48.53 a barrel. Both benchmarks reached their highest level since the beginning of March.
“All the headlines have been bullish on oil prices,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA in New York.
“US reserves saw a bigger drop than expected, three of India’s refineries are operating at almost 100% capacity, indicating that demand for crude remains strong, and it appears that the US is still running. It will continue to provide more monetary and fiscal stimulus, which causes the dollar to go down most of the basic products go up. ” US crude inventories fell 3.1 million barrels in the week through Dec. 11, the Energy Information Administration said, more than analysts’ expectations of a 1.9 million barrel drop.
Also boosting oil prices, US lawmakers moved closer to agreeing on a spending package to ease the $ 900 billion virus on Wednesday, and leading Democrats and Republicans were more positive than they have in the past. months about doing something.
The United States also expanded on Thursday its campaign to deliver COVID-19 vaccine injections into the arms of doctors and nurses on the front lines of a pandemic that has killed more than 2,500 Americans a day this week.
“The last full trading week of the year has been very optimistic for crude prices as energy traders focus more on the light at the end of the COVID tunnel and Asian demand remains strong,” Moya added. – Reuters
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