Oil climbs on hopes for output cuts to offset China virus impact - Reuters

Oil climbs on hopes for output cuts to offset China virus impact - Reuters:

Oil prices rose on Wednesday, boosted by news that OPEC and its producer allies are weighing further output cuts to counter a potential squeeze on global oil demand resulting from China’s fast-spreading coronavirus.

Brent crude oil futures LCOc1 were up 31 cents, or 0.6%, to $54.27 a barrel by 0734 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were up 21 cents or 0.4% to $49.82 a barrel. Both prices earlier rose more than 1%.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies led by Russia, a group known as OPEC+, weighed the impact on global oil demand, and economic growth, of the coronavirus outbreak at a meeting on Tuesday, hearing from China’s envoy to the United Nations in Vienna.

Producers are weighing further output cuts and moving a planned policy meeting to February rather than March.