Oil surged more than 12% as China planned to start buying up cheap crude for its strategic reserves, adding to tentative signs of growing risk appetite across financial markets that’s propelling prices higher. Futures extended gains as Beijing instructed government agencies to start filling state stockpiles after oil plunged 66% over the first three months of the year. China’s move comes as the physical crude market shows deepening signs of strain as supply explodes and demand collapses due to the coronavirus. Dated Brent, the benchmark for two-thirds of the world’s physical supply, was assessed at $15.135 on Wednesday, the lowest since at least 1999. Crude has slipped below $10 in some areas including Canada and shale regions in the U.S., while some grades have posted negative prices. Brent crude futures advanced more than 10% on Thursday China’s purchases are likely to help soak […]