Yemisi Izuora
US oil price hit a three-month high on Tuesday, buoyed by production cuts led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC.
US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $55.95 per barrel up 36 cents, or 0.7 per cent, from their last settlement. Earlier in the session, they marked their strongest since November 20 at $56.33 a barrel.
Prices had risen 2.2 per cent on Friday, the last trading session due to a US public holiday on Monday.
However, the International Brent crude oil futures had yet to trade. They closed Monday up 0.4 per cent, after touching their highest since November 20 at $66.83 a barrel.
“OPEC and other major producers have done their part to stabilise prices by limiting output,” said Alfonso Esparza, senior market analyst, OANDA.
“Disruptions in crude supply have also taken prices higher despite the United States ramping up production levels and softer global demand.”
Saudi Arabia’s crude oil exports in December fell to 7.690 million barrels per day (bpd) from 8.235 million bpd in November official data showed on Monday.
US energy companies last week increased the number of oil rigs looking for new supply by three to a total of 857, energy services firm Baker Hughes said in a report on Friday.