Oil rises on hopes of strong US demand

Oil drilling rigs

Oil prices climbed today, June 26, as geopolitical tensions eased and markets returned to fundamentals, following a fifth consecutive weekly decline in US crude oil inventories.

Brent crude was trading up 0.35% at $67.93 a barrel, at 08:04 am Makkah time. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 0.4% to $65.19 a barrel.

This comes after data from the US Energy Information Administration showed that US crude oil inventories fell by 5.8 million barrels, exceeding analysts' expectations of a 797,000-barrel decline.

Gasoline inventories unexpectedly fell by 2.1 million barrels, compared to market expectations of a 381,000-barrel increase, as gasoline supplies to the market, a key indicator of demand, rose to their highest level since December 2021.