Oil prices were on the march on Wednesday after industry data showing a fall in stockpiles of U.S. crude somewhat eased worries about subdued demand due to the China-U.S. trade war.
Brent crude futures climbed 2.13% to $60.78 U.S. a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 2.88% to $56.51 U.S. a barrel, rising as much as 3%.
Data released Wednesday by the Energy Information Administration revealed that crude inventories fell by 10.0 million barrels from the previous week.
Earlier data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) showed U.S. crude stockpiles plummeted 11.1 million barrels last week as imports dropped, compared with expectations for a two-million-barrel draw.
Crude prices have fallen about 20% from their April highs for the year, partly because of worries that the trade war is hurting the global economy and could dent oil demand.
Morgan Stanley on Wednesday lowered its price outlook for the rest of the year for Brent to around $60 U.S. per barrel from $65 and for U.S. crude to $55 per barrel from $58 as it downgraded its demand growth forecast for this year and next.
