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0828 GMT, Brent crude <LCOc1> futures were up 36 cents to $96.91
a barrel after rising to the highest since November earlier in
the session.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures (WTI) were up 24
cents at $93.92 a barrel, after rising above $95 earlier in the
session for the first time since August 2022.
"The present move up is unequivocally led by scarce supply and
actual inventory decline," said Tamas Varga of oil broker PVM.
U.S. crude stocks fell by 2.2 million barrels last week to 416.3
million barrels, government data showed, far eclipsing the
320,000-barrel drop analysts expected in a Reuters poll. [EIA/S]
"Stocks are drawing while demand keeps growing. We are still far
away from a price level causing demand destruction," said
Stefano Grasso, a senior portfolio manager at 8VantEdge in
Singapore.
Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, storage hub that is the
delivery point for U.S. crude futures fell by 943,000 barrels in
the week to less than 22 million barrels, the lowest since July
2022, data showed.
Stockpiles at Cushing have been falling to near historic lows
due to strong refining and export demand, prompting concerns
about quality of the remaining oil at the hub and whether it
will fall below minimum operating levels.
The crude draws follow combined voluntary cuts of 1.3 million
barrels a day to the end of the year by Saudi Arabia and Russia,
part of the group known as OPEC+ made up of the Organization of
the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies.
Russia's ban on fuel exports will not be lifted soon and will
remain in place until the domestic market stabilises, the
state-run TASS news agency reported on Thursday, citing Russian
Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov on Thursday.
Though Brent prices are nearing the $100 a barrel mark, "the
narrative of higher-for-longer interest rates in the U.S. might
dampen enthusiasm and could put a lid on prices," said Sugandha
Sachdeva, executive director at Acme Investment Advisors.
(Reporting by Natalie Grover, Florence Tan and Mohi Narayan;
Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Tom Hogue)
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