Oil prices rise on higher US crude demand

Oil prices rose on Thursday as US implied consumer petroleum demand surged to a record high in the world's top oil consumer despite Omicron variant of coronavirus threatens to dent consumption globally.

Despite the current virus surge, the weekly demand for petroleum products hit a record high, Reuters reported, citing Edward Moya, senior analyst at OANDA.

“Crude exports bounced back and national crude stocks posted a larger-than-expected draw," he added.

The current Omicron wave may lead to limited restrictive measures across the US, but lockdowns that happened during the peak of the pandemic will not be revisited, Moya said.

US crude inventories fell by 4.6 million barrels in the week to Dec. 10, data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed.

Brent crude oil futures rose 0.9% to $74.53 a barrel by 9am Makkah time, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures increased 1% to $71.61.