WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Oil prices climbed higher on Friday amid optimism about the outlook for demand on hopes of additional economic stimulus in China, and on recent data showing a drop in U.S. crude inventories. Markets also expect interest rates to remain lower for the next few quarters, if not longer.
West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for February closed higher by $0.83 or about 1.13% at $73.96 a barrel, settling higher for the fifth consecutive session.
Brent crude futures settled higher by $0.58 or about 0.75% at $76.51 a barrel.
China's central bank is likely to cut interest rates from the current level of 1.5 percent 'at an appropriate time' in 2025, the Financial Times reported.
The Chinese government announced two new initiatives to be funded by ultra-long-term bonds that aim to spur business investment.
China's economy was 'overall stable and progressing amid stability,' Xi said at a new year event earlier this week, according to a speech published by the official Xinhua News Agency.
Reaffirming the official GDP target of around 5% for the full year of 2024, Xi sought to allay fears that the world's second-largest economy would falter over the next 12 months in the face of some new situations, challenges from the uncertainty of the external environment and pressure of transformation from old drivers of growth into new ones.
Data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said crude oil inventories decreased by 1.2 million barrels last week after tumbling by 4.2 million barrels in the previous week. Economists had expected crude oil inventories to slump by 2.8 million barrels.
At 415.6 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are about 5% below the five-year average for this time of year, the EIA said.
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