WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Oil prices rose more than 1 percent on Tuesday after media reports suggested that China will probably ease its disruptive COVID-Zero policy by the end of this year.
A weaker dollar and the decision of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to lift its medium to long term demand forecasts also offered some support.
Benchmark Brent crude futures rallied 1.5 percent to $94.16 a barrel, while WTI crude futures were up 1.3 percent at $87.64.
Chinese and Hong Kong stocks posted strong gains today after a post on social media suggested Chinese officials were forming a committee to discuss rolling back some of the country's economically painful zero-COVID policies.
The U.S. dollar fell from a one-week against a basket of major peers as markets held out hopes that the Federal Reserve might signal a slowdown of its tightening path after delivering a 75-bps rate hike on Wednesday.
Also helping boost confidence, OPEC raised its forecasts for world oil demand in the medium- and longer-term in an annual outlook released on Monday.
The group revised its previous forecast for 2023 higher by 1.4 million barrels per day, saying that the combination of a more robust recovery than previously expected and a global shift toward prioritizing energy security over an energy transition will drive this demand growth.
According to OPEC, oil demand is seen rising to 108.3 million barrels per day in 2030.
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