Oil prices jumped on Friday, extending the previous session’s gains, buoyed by a lower-than-expected gain in US crude inventories and the start of output cuts in a bid to offset a slump in fuel demand triggered by the coronavirus pandemic.
Brent crude for July delivery, which started trading on Friday as the new front-month contract, was up $1.10, or 4.2 per cent, at $27.58 a barrel by 0013 GMT. Brent gained 12 per cent on Thursday.
US crude for June delivery climbed $1.37, or 7.3 per cent, to $20.21 a barrel, having gained 25 per cent in the previous session.
“This is a second straight week of inventory and product demand figures suggesting a bottoming of the US market,” said Stephen Innes, chief market strategist at AxiCorp.
