SINGAPORE: Oil prices rose 1 per cent on Monday, extending gains as traders eyed a recovery in crude demand due to successful coronavirus vaccine trials.
Sentiment was also bolstered by hopes that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Russia and other producers, a group known as OPEC+, will continue to restrain production.
Brent crude futures rose 63 cents, or 1.4 per cent, to $45.59 a barrel by 07:33 GMT while US West Texas Intermediate crude gained 49 cents, or 1.2 per cent, to $42.91 a barrel. Both benchmarks jumped 5 per cent last week.
“Positive sentiment continues to be driven by the recent good news about the efficacy of coronavirus vaccines in development and the expectation that the OPEC+ meeting at the end of this month could see the group extend current cuts by 3-6 months,” said Stephen Innes, Chief Global Markets Strategist at axi, a financial services firm.
British drugmaker AstraZeneca said on Monday its vaccine for the novel coronavirus, developed along with the University of Oxford, could be around 90 per cent effective under one dosing regimen. — Reuters
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