HOUSTON: Oil prices edged higher on Tuesday as a drop in euro zone inflation buoyed hopes that the European Central Bank has almost certainly finished raising interest rates, and offset rising supply from OPEC and the United States.
Brent crude futures for December delivery, were 31 cents, or 0.4% higher at $87.76 a barrel by 12:42 p.m. ET (1542 GMT) ahead of their expiry later on Tuesday.
The more heavily traded January contract rose 11 cents, or 0.1%, to $86.47. US West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery rose 25 cents, or 0.3%, to $82.55, while those for January delivery rose 21 cents, or 0.3%, to $81.89.
Oil prices had fallen on Monday in part “because Israel’s ground offensive in the Gaza Strip is so far proceeding only gradually and has thus not yet sparked any further escalation of the Middle East conflict,” Commerzbank analysts said. But investors continue to be wary of the potential for other countries in the region to enter the conflict.
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