By Shadia Nasralla
LONDON (Reuters) -Oil prices climbed for a fourth straight day and hit their highest in two and a half weeks on Thursday with U.S. crude, heating oil and jet fuel stocks growing tighter just as a wintry blast hits the United States.
Brent crude futures gained $1.17, or 1.4%, to trade at $83.37 at 1235 GMT, extending gains of around 2.7% from the previous session.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up $1.11, or 1.4%, at $79.40 a barrel.
Both benchmark contracts jumped on Wednesday after government data showed U.S. crude inventories fell by much more than analysts had expected, posting a drop of 5.89 million barrels for the week ending on Dec. 16. [EIA/S]
Distillate stocks, which include heating oil and jet fuel, also declined, going against expectations for a build, in what PVM analyst Stephen Brennock called “an overwhelmingly price-supportive stock report from the EIA”.
The falling stockpiles come as demand for heating oil is set to soar with a powerful winter storm hitting the United States, with sub-zero wind chills expected as far south as Texas and record-breaking lows forecast for Florida and eastern states.
Jet fuel consumption is also expected to pick up with a post-COVID boom in travel for the end-of-year holiday season, although transport fuel demand might be reduced if the storm keeps people from travelling.
Demand worries, however, stemming from China’s COVID-19 surge and fears of a global recession may keep oil futures in check.
China may be struggling to keep an accurate count of COVID infections as it experiences a big spike in cases, a senior World Health Organization official said on Wednesday, amid concerns about a lack of data from the country.
(Additional reporting by Sonali Paul in Melbourne and Mohi Narayan in New Delhi; editing by Jason Neely)