Oil is set for the longest run of monthly gains in five years as output disruptions from Nigeria to Canada reduce supply before OPEC meets Thursday in Vienna to discuss production policy.
Oil headed for the longest run of weekly gains since May amid signs of rising U.S. fuel demand and easing crude production.
US stocks rose for a third day to further pare their December decline, with energy shares leading amid a rally in crude oil. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.7 percent to 2,053.85 at 10:04 a.m. in New York, after rising 1.7 percent during the prior two sessions. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 120.74 points, or 0.7 percent, to 17,538.01. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.7 percent. Trading in S&P 500 shares was 14 percent lower than the 30-day average at this time of day. US exchanges will close early on Thursday for the Christmas holiday and reopen on Dec. 28.
Oil headed for a third weekly decline on signs a global glut will be prolonged amid the longest run of US stockpile gains in seven months. Futures are down 0.8 percent this week after falling below $40 a barrel Wednesday for the first time since August. Crude inventories expanded for an eighth week, the longest stretch of increases since April, government data showed Wednesday. That’s sustaining supplies in the world’s biggest oil consumer more than 100 million barrels above the five-year average level.