London — Oil prices rose for a sixth day on Wednesday, supported by robust U.S. economic growth and the risk of supply disruptions from Venezuela and Russia, though prices were on course for their steepest annual decline since 2020.Brent crude futures were up 13 cents, or 0.2%, to $62.51 a barrel at 1425 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 22 cents, or 0.4%, at $58.60.
Both contracts have gained about 6% since December 16, when they plunged to near five-year lows.
“What we’ve seen over the past week is a combination of position squaring in thin markets, after last week’s breakdown failed to gain traction, coupled with heightened geopolitical tensions, including the U.S. blockade on Venezuela and supported by last night’s robust GDP data,” IG analyst Tony Sycamore said.
U.S. data showed the world’s largest economy grew at its fastest pace in two years in the third quarter, fueled by robust consumer spending and a sharp rebound in exports.
Still, Brent and WTI prices are on track to drop about 16% and 18%, respectively, this year – their steepest declines since 2020 when the COVID pandemic hit oil demand – as supply is expected to outpace demand next year.
On the supply side, disruptions to Venezuelan exports have been the most significant factor pushing up oil prices, while Russia’s and Ukraine’s continued attacks on each other’s energy infrastructure have also supported the market, Haitong Futures said in a report.
More than a dozen loaded vessels are in Venezuela waiting for new directions from their owners after the U.S. seized the supertanker Skipper earlier this month and targeted two additional vessels over the weekend.
Additionally, oil shipments from Kazakhstan via the Caspian Pipeline Consortium are set to drop by a third in December to the lowest since October 2024 after a Ukrainian drone attack damaged facilities at the main CPC export terminal, two market sources said on Wednesday.
U.S. crude inventories rose by 2.39 million barrels last week, while gasoline stocks increased by 1.09 million barrels and distillate inventories rose by 685,000 barrels, market sources said, citing American Petroleum Institute figures on Tuesday.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration is due to release official inventory data on Monday, later than usual due to the Christmas holiday.
Additional reporting by Sam Li in Beijing and Siyi Liu in Singapore. Editing by Elaine Hardcastle and Mark Potter – Reuters
