Oil prices held gains on Tuesday as news of a third promising vaccine candidate spurred hopes of a quick recovery in oil demand, while U.S. President-elect Joe Biden received the go-ahead to begin his presidential transition.
Brent crude futures rose 3 cents, or 0.1%, to $46.09 a barrel by 0113 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude added 11 cents, or 0.3%, to $43.17 a barrel. Both benchmarks settled up about 2% on Monday after gaining about 5% last week.
“Oil prices are consolidating near three-month highs after a third successful coronavirus vaccine trial, better-than-expected flash PMI readings across Europe and the U.S.,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA.
