Analysts say the rise reflects expectations for a surge of people travelling for the holidays
Singapore — Oil prices rose on Thursday as US implied consumer petroleum demand surged to a record high in the world’s top oil consumer even as the Omicron variant of coronavirus threatens to dent oil consumption globally.
Brent crude oil futures rose by 65 US cents, or 0.9%, to $74.53 a barrel by 4.36am GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures increased by 74 US cents, or 1%, to $71.61.oil inventory report showed demand for petroleum products hit a record high, crude exports bounced back and national crude stocks posted a larger-than-expected draw,” said Edward Moya, senior analyst at Oanda.
US crude inventories sank by 4.6-million barrels in the week to December 10, data from the EIA showed. That was more than double expectations in a Reuters poll for a 2.1-million-barrel drop. Analysts said the rise reflects both expectations for a surge of people travelling for the holidays and the loosening of supply-chain bottlenecks that has more trucks on the road delivering goods.