Washington/IBNS: Crude oil prices extended gains on Thursday (July 11), keeping the Brent crude benchmark above the $85 per barrel-mark, after Wall Street experts lifted bets on interest rate cuts by the United States Federal Reserve, reports Mint.
According to reports, this came after the United States government data showed an unexpected slowdown in consumer price-based (CPI) inflation.
Brent crude futures were up 23 cents, or 0.3 percent, at $85.31 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 36 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $82.46 per barrel, Mint reported.
Coming to domestic prices, crude oil futures last traded 0.55 percent higher at Rs 6,896 per barrel on the multi-commodity exchange (MCX), as reported by Mint.
Mint reported, citing analysts, that the recovery in crude oil prices was driven by a decrease in US oil stocks, improved demand prospects, and hopes for rate cuts.
The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said crude oil inventories in the US decreased by 3.4 million barrels, compared to the expected decline of 1.3 million barrels, as per reports.
Meanwhile, the OPEC+ (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) group reaffirmed its global oil demand forecast for the second half of 2024 and 2025, anticipating a surge in demand due to increased air travel and a recovery in global economic growth, as reported by Mint.
