Oil prices up 2.18% to $95.72 per barrel

International benchmark Brent crude traded at $95.72 per barrel on the last trading day of the week, representing a 2.18 per cent increase from the closing price of $93.67 a barrel in the previous trading session.

Also, the American benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) traded at $88.38 per barrel at the same time, a 2.21 per cent gain after the previous session closed at $86.47 a barrel.

Prices gained momentum after better-than-expected inflation data in the US, raising hopes for an improvement in the world’s largest oil-consuming country.

The consumer price index (CPI), which measures changes in the prices of goods and services from a consumer’s perspective, came in at 7.7 per cent in October, easing from the 8.2 per cent annual gain in September, according to Labor Department figures.

The slowdown in inflation reassured investors that the Fed could take its foot off the throttle in increasing interest rates in the coming months.

However, data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) signalled a decline in demand as US commercial crude oil inventories rose by around 3.9 million barrels to 440.8 million barrels, against the market expectation of an increase of around 1.1 million barrels.

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However, the outlook for demand in China remains hazy, despite the government’s relaxation of some pandemic restrictions, DailyTimesNGR gathered.

China loosened some of its strict COVID regulations, including the two-day quarantines for visitors and close contact with sick people, as well as fines for airlines that brought in an excessive number of cases.

Meanwhile, as the EU prepares to impose sanctions on Russian oil exports on Dec. 5 in response to Russia’s attack on Ukraine, supply issues have supported price rises.