Crude Oil prices increased as cold weather led to the shutdown of several oil wells and refineries in Texas, which is claimed to be the biggest crude producing state in the US.

Brent crude increased by $0.35, or 0.6%, to reach $63.65 a barrel at 4:34am GMT while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude increased by $0.82 or 1.4%, to reach $60.29 a barrel, reported Reuters.

Prices also climbed following a claim of a drone attack by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group at Abha and Jeddah airports of Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, reported Reuters.

The Saudi-led coalition claimed on 15 January that it had intercepted and destroyed the Houthis’ explosive-laden drone.

The accelerated rollouts of the Covid-19 vaccine have also led to the optimism of economic recovery, which in turn is supporting the prices.

Axi chief global markets strategist Stephen Innes was quoted by the news agency as saying: “The unexpected US supply disruption provides another short-term price recovery bridge that has likely taken oil prices to a level where markets were eventually heading but just a little bit quicker than expected.”

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In addition to affecting production at oil wells and refineries in Texas, the cold weather in the US has triggered restrictions on operational natural gas and crude pipeline projects.

According to the Energy Information Administration data, Texas, which is home to 31 refineries, produces nearly 4.6 million barrels of oil a day.