Oil prices were steady on Wednesday, after falling by more than 3% to six-month lows on oversupply and demand concerns.
Brent crude futures for February rose 16 cents, or 0.3%, to $73.40 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures for January gained 20 cents, or 0.3%, to $68.81 a barrel.
The market declined a mite in overnight trade as firmer-than-expected U.S. inflation readings for November bolstered the view the Federal Reserve was unlikely to cut interest rates early next year, which would weigh on consumption.
Meanwhile, weekly average Russian crude exports jumped to the highest since July, ANZ analysts said, compounding oversupply concerns and throwing doubt on the recent output cut agreement by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+).
Moreover, the U.S. Energy Information Administration raised its forecast for supply in 2023 by 300,000 barrels per day from its previous report to 12.93 million barrels per day.
The bearish outlook puts oil on track to decline for an eighth straight week.
The United Nations on Wednesday passed a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, with U.S. President Joe Biden warning that Israel was starting to lose international support because of civilian deaths.
Finally, nearly 200 nations reached a historic deal to begin reducing the global consumption of fossil fuels at the COP28 conference, meant to send a signal to investors in oil and other fossil fuels.
