Oil Prices Edge Up 

Oil prices rose as much as $1 on Friday, extending gains from the previous session, supported by hopes of a China demand boost and after data showed lower US fuel inventories following a winter storm that hit at the end of the year.
Brent crude futures were 75 cents, or 1%, higher at $79.44 a barrel, after settling 85 cents stronger at $78.69 on Thursday, Reuters reported.
US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 74 cents, or 1%, at $74.41 a barrel. They had settled 83 cents higher at $73.67 in the previous session.
China announced more state support measures on Thursday, including establishing a dynamic adjustment mechanism on mortgage rates for first-time home buyers, in a bid to boost its highly indebted property sector, which accounts for a quarter of the country's economy.
The total number of passenger trips via road, rail, water and air during the upcoming Lunar New Year is expected to reach 2.1 billion this year, transport officials said on Friday, double the 1.05 billion during the same period of last year.
China, the world's largest crude oil importer, has ended its stringent zero-Covid policy, leading to a surge in Covid infections across the country.
In the US, data from the Energy Information Administration showed on Thursday that distillate inventories, which include diesel and heating oil, dropped more than expected in the week to Dec. 30.