Brent crude held above $106 a barrel today on improving economic outlook and increased oil demand in China.
Reuters reported that Brent traded at $106.02 while US crude gained 47 cents to settle at $100.43 a barrel.
Brent was trading below $106 a barrel before the release of China’s economic data, which was better than anticipated and is expected to have a positive impact on oil prices.
The Chinese Government data revealed that the country’s economy increased 7.5% between April and June, compared with the previous year.
According to Reuters, China’s implied oil demand increased 2.6% compared with a year ago to 10.2 million barrels per day in June, the highest since January 2013.
Meanwhile, data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) showed that crude oil inventories declined 4.8 million barrels in the week ending 11 July.
The US Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) is scheduled to reveal weekly oil data later on Wednesday.
Investors are watching the situation in Libya where oil output has increased to 588,000bpd.
Libya recently saw renewed violence after a number of soldiers were killed and an aircraft was destroyed, as rival militias in the country fought to take control of Tripoli’s airport.
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