Oil prices edged higher Wednesday as Saudi Arabia’s surprise weekend pledge to deepen output cuts outweighed weak Chinese export data and rising U.S. fuel stocks.
Figures out mid-week showed Brent crude futures up 81 cents, or 1.06%, at $77.10 U.S. a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures gained 85 cents, or 1.25%, to $72.64.
Both benchmarks jumped more than $1 on Monday after Saudi Arabia’s decision over the weekend to reduce output by one million barrels per day (bpd) to nine million bpd in July.
Prices fell earlier in the session on weak Chinese economic data and rising U.S. fuel inventories.
China’s exports shrank much faster than expected in May and imports fell, albeit at a slower pace, as manufacturers struggled to find demand abroad and domestic consumption remained sluggish.
Wednesday’s data also showed that crude oil imports into China, the world’s largest oil importer, rose to their third-highest monthly level in May as refiners built up inventories.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration on Tuesday said that U.S crude oil production this year would rise faster and demand increases would be slower than previously expected.
