Brent, WTI Prices Climb

Oil prices edged higher on Wednesday after rallying overnight as industry data showed a decline in US inventories, boosting demand sentiment.
Brent crude rose 26 cents, or 0.3%, at $79.20 a barrel. WTI crude climbed 19 cents, or 0.2%, to $76.17 a barrel, Reuters reported.
"Some long-covering is evident in Asia today in an otherwise nondescript session," said OANDA analyst Jeffrey Halley in a note.
Both contracts are trading near their highest levels in a month, aided by the strength in global equities.
Asset classes from oil to equities have clawed back losses from late November, when the Omicron variant of Covid-19 sent investors scurrying for safety.
American Petroleum Institute data showed US crude stocks fell by 3.1 million barrels in the week ended Dec. 24, market sources said late on Tuesday, in line with expectations of nine analysts polled by Reuters.
Gasoline inventories registered a lower-than-expected decline of 319,000 barrels, while distillate stocks dropped by 716,000 barrels compared with hopes of a 200,000-barrel drop.
Weekly data from the US Energy Information Administration is due later on Wednesday.
Oil prices have been underpinned by three oil producers declaring forces majeure this month on part of their oil production because of maintenance issues and oilfield shutdowns.