Brent hits multi-week highs

Singapore, May 20 (BNA): Brent crude futures extended gains on Monday.

Brent gained 10 cents, or 0.1 percent, to $84.08 a barrel by 0454 GMT, after rising to $84.30 earlier, its highest level since May 10.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for June fell 5 cents to $80.01 a barrel, after earlier hitting $80.23, the highest since May 1. The June contract expires on Tuesday, and the more active July contract was at $83.75, up 12 cents. , or 0.1%.

Brent ended the previous week up about 1 percent, its first weekly gain in three weeks, while WTI rose 2 percent on improved economic indicators in the U.S. and China, the world’s biggest oil consumers, Reuters reported.

In the United States, Washington took advantage of the recent drop in oil prices, saying late last week it had bought 3.3 million barrels of oil at $79.38 a barrel to help replenish the Strategic Petroleum Reserve after a massive sell-off stock in 2022.

HH