Oil Soars Above $66 With Saudi Supply Gamble Buoying Crude Bulls - Bloomberg

Oil Soars Above $66 With Saudi Supply Gamble Buoying Crude Bulls - Bloomberg

Oil rallied to the highest in nearly two years in New York after OPEC+ shocked markets with a decision to keep supply limited as the global economy starts to recover from the pandemic-driven slump.

U.S. benchmark crude futures topped $66 a barrel on Friday, while its global counterpart Brent edged closer to the key $70-a-barrel level. The producer alliance’s aggressive supply management and the continued rollout of vaccines worldwide has aided a stellar rebound for crude since the depths of the coronavirus-related fallout. OPEC+’s surprise decision on Thursday to keep output steady in April has accelerated those price gains, spurring a wave of upgrades in oil price forecasts by major banks and a surge in the market’s structure.

PRICES: West Texas Intermediate for April delivery advanced $2.18 to $66.01 a barrel at 12:34 p.m. in New York, the highest intraday level since April 2019 Futures are poised for the largest weekly gain in a month, up more than 7% so far this week Brent for May settlement climbed $2.48 to $69.22 a barrel