Oil prices climbed on Wednesday as hopes of an effective COVID-19 vaccine continued to bolster sentiment and an industry report showed U.S. crude inventories fell more than expected.
Brent crude rose $1.17, or 2.7%, to $44.78 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude added $1.17 cents, or 2.8%, to $42.53 U.S. a barrel. Both benchmarks gained nearly 3% on Tuesday.
U.S. crude stockpiles fell by 5.1 million barrels last week to about 482 million barrels, industry group data showed on Tuesday, compared with analysts’ expectations in an economist poll for a reduction of 913,000 barrels.
Both Brent and U.S. oil prices are up more than 13% this week since initial trials data showed the experimental COVID-19 vaccine being developed by Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE) and Germany’s BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX) was 90% effective.
Although oil prices are supported by the positive news on the vaccine, the overall fuel demand outlook remains clouded as coronavirus restrictions are re-imposed in Europe and United States.
Renewed restrictions in Europe and the United States to combat the coronavirus have slowed the pace of the fuel demand recovery, offsetting a rebound in Asian economies where consumption has almost returned to pre-COVID levels.