Oil hovers near 13-month highs as storm hits U.S. output, Fed assures rates staying low | Reuters

Oil hovers near 13-month highs as storm hits U.S. output, Fed assures rates staying low | Reuters

Oil prices extended gains for a fourth session on Thursday to reach the highest levels in more than 13 months, underpinned by an assurance that U.S. interest rates will stay low, and a sharp drop in U.S. crude output last week due to the storm in Texas.

Brent crude futures for April gained 37 cents, 0.6%, to $67.41 a barrel by 0718 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude for April was at $63.54 a barrel, up 32 cents, 0.5%.

Both contracts touched their highest since Jan. 8, 2020, earlier in the session with Brent at $67.49 and WTI at $63.67. The April Brent contract expires on Friday.

An assurance from the U.S. Federal Reserve that interest rates would stay low for a while weakened the U.S. dollar, while boosting investors’ risk appetite and global equity markets.

A severe winter storm in Texas has caused U.S. crude production to drop by more than 10%, or 1 million barrels per day (bpd) last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.