Crude oil futures held on to gains notched overnight in mid-morning trade in Asia Dec. 29 as risk sentiment in financial markets remained buoyant amid the festive season, though COVID-19 caseloads were still a concern.
At 10:12 am Singapore time (0212 GMT), the ICE February Brent futures contract was up 10 cents/b (0.13%) from the previous close at $79.04/b. The NYMEX February light sweet crude contract was down 1 cent/b (0.01%) at $75.97/b, snapping five straight days of gains. Bullish sentiment in the broader financial markets continued to drive asset prices higher. The S&P 500 momentarily touched a fresh record high overnight, though it later pared gains to close lower on the day. Oil prices were also supported by data from the American Petroleum Institute Dec. 28 showing US crude oil inventories fell by 3.1 million barrels […]