Oil extends gains on prospect of OPEC+ sticking with supply cuts | Reuters

Oil extends gains on prospect of OPEC+ sticking with supply cuts | Reuters

Oil prices rose for a second straight session on Thursday, as the possibility that OPEC+ producers might decide against increasing output at a key meeting later in the day lent support, alongside a drop in U.S. fuel inventories.

Brent crude futures added 52 cents, or 0.8%, to $64.59 a barrel, as of 0709 GMT, after climbing more than 2% on Wednesday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 43 cents, or 0.7% to $61.71 a barrel.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies, together called OPEC+, are considering rolling over production cuts into April instead of raising output, as a recovery in oil demand remains fragile due to the coronavirus crisis, three OPEC+ sources told Reuters.

The market had been expecting OPEC+ to ease production cuts by around 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) from April and for OPEC leader Saudi Arabia to end its voluntary production cut of an additional 1 million bpd.