Oil rises around 2% on strong U.S. demand, upbeat Fed outlook | Reuters

Oil rises around 2% on strong U.S. demand, upbeat Fed outlook | Reuters

Oil prices rose around 2% on Thursday, as record U.S. implied demand, falling crude stockpiles and an upbeat economic outlook from the Federal Reserve trumped fears of the Omicron coronavirus variant hurting global consumption.

Crude and other risk assets such as equities also got a boost after the Fed gave an upbeat economic outlook, lifting investor spirits even as the U.S. central bank flagged a long-awaited end to monetary stimulus.

"The market was fearful of what the Fed was going to do, and now that it's in the rearview and we know what we're dealing with, the market is rallying," said Phil Flynn, senior analyst price futures group in Chicago.

Brent crude oil rose $1.14, or 1.5%, to settle at $75.02 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $1.51, or 2.1%, to settle at $72.38 a barrel, a 2.13 percent gain.