jordan pulse -
Oil prices rose in early trading Thursday, extending the gains of the previous session, as the outlook for demand in China improved and concerns grew about the impact of sanctions on Russian supplies.
Brent crude rose 50 cents, or 0.6%, to $83.17 a barrel by 01:35 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude also rose 50 cents, or 0.7%, to $77.91 a barrel.
Both benchmarks rose 3% in Wednesday's session, to settle at their highest levels since December 30.
China, the world's largest oil importer, is reopening its economy after the end of strict restrictions to combat the spread of the Corona virus, which reinforces optimism that fuel demand will grow in 2023.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said that Chinese industrial production is expected to grow 3.6% in 2022 from the previous year, despite the disruption to production and logistics due to the Corona restrictions.
The market is preparing for additional restrictions targeting sales of Russian fuel products set to take effect in February, as the European Union continues to work to impose further sanctions on Moscow over the Ukraine attack.
The US Energy Information Administration said that the upcoming ban by the European Union on seaborne imports of Russian petroleum products on February 5 may be more effective than that imposed by the Union on seaborne imports of crude oil from Russia in December 2022.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said Russian oil producers had not faced any difficulties in securing export deals despite Western sanctions and price ceilings.
The international price ceiling imposed on sales of Russian crude came into effect on December 5.
Reuters