Black gold trading extended its consolidation to an 8-month high as the sharp fall in US crude oil supply extended price hikes previously supported by market expectations of a recovery in global demand.
Brent crude futures rose 35 cents to $ 48.88 a barrel, while the US WTI gained 24 cents to $ 45.95 a barrel in the Asian session.
Both benchmarks recorded a 9% increase this week after being driven by positive developments in the Covid-19 vaccine development efforts, raising market expectations to see a recovery in world fuel demand.
Commodity prices continued to strengthen after the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a sharp drop in crude oil inventory of 0.754 million barrels last week, after registering an increase of 0.768 million barrels in the previous week.
Meanwhile, crude oil stocks in Cushing, Oklahoma, which were the driver for US WTI futures, fell 1.7 million barrels to about 60 million barrels last week, the lowest since early October.
In addition, prices were also supported by the expected delay by OPEC + in their plans to loosen its commitment to cut crude oil production next year.
