Oil prices rally ahead of OPEC meeting despite Omicron concerns | Reuters

Oil prices rally ahead of OPEC meeting despite Omicron concerns | Reuters

Oil prices rallied on Wednesday after recent sharp drops as major producers started to discuss future output against the backdrop of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus triggering fresh travel restrictions which could dampen oil demand.

Equity markets, which often move in tandem with oil prices also rebounded as investors bought the previous session's dip in the hope that Omicron would not derail an economic recovery.

Brent crude futures for February rose $2.10, or 3%, to $71.33 a barrel at 1331 GMT.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose $1.91, or 2.9%, to $68.09 a barrel. Both contracts retraced some of their gains after an OPEC+ document showed the group forecasts a bigger oil surplus in the new year.