Oil advances as OPEC+ heads closer to further oil reduction

SINGAPORE- Oil prices increased up to 1% on Wednesday on optimism that major oil manufacturers are close to sealing an agreement implementing deeper oil reduction. The said cuts are aimed at equalizing the decline in demand brought by the novel coronavirus contagion.

Brent crude LCOc1 added 58 cents, equivalent to 1.12%, and last stood at $52.44 per barrel at exactly 0212 GMT. The crude soared further after raking in 4 cents in its previous session. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures CLc1 jumped 53 cents, equivalent to 1.12%, and was last quoted at $47.71 per barrel.

Both contracts met a sharp 27% decline from their 2020-high record in January. The underperformance was mainly from the slump in demand due to the COVID 2019.

An Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and other associates known as OPEC+ advised reducing oil outputs by 1 million barrels per day on Tuesday. The recommendation may indicate that Russia and Saudi Arabia, two largest manufacturers under the organization, are heading closer to an agreement to aid prices.