Global oil prices rose on Thursday, extending strong gains made in previous trade sessions on expectations of tighter supplies until the end of the year as economies recover from the coronavirus crisis, Reuters news agency reports.
In early morning trades, Brent crude rose 27 cents, or 0.4%, to $72.50 a barrel, after rising 4.2% in the previous session. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 33 cents, or 0.5%, to $70.63 a barrel, after rising 4.6% on Wednesday.
Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other major oil producers including Russia, a group known as OPEC+, agreed this week on a deal to boost oil supply by 400,000 barrels per day from August to December to cool prices and meet growing demand.
But demand was still set to outstrip supply in the second half, leading Brent prices to trade in the mid to high-$70s per barrel for the remainder of 2021, according to Morgan Stanley, the U.S.-based bank.
Crude oil inventories in the U.S, the world's top oil consumer, increased unexpectedly by 2.1 million barrels last week to 439.7 million barrels, up for the first time since May, U.S. Energy Information Administration data showed.