BEIJING- Oil extended gains in Asian trade on Thursday after a surprise drop in US crude stockpiles indicated strengthening demand, while possible supply disruptions following Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries also underpinned prices.
Brent futures rose 10 cents, or 0.12 percent, to $84.13 a barrel while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 7 cents, or 0.9 percent, at $79.79 per barrel.
Both contracts had risen about 3 percent to a four-month high on Wednesday on the elevated US demand outlook and heightened geopolitical risk.
Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian refining facilities continued for a second day on Wednesday, causing a fire at Rosneft’s biggest refinery in one of the most serious attacks against Russia’s energy sector in recent months.
After seriously damaging Lukoil’s refinery in Nizhny Novgorod on Tuesday, Ukraine hit refineries in the Rostov and Ryazan regions, Russian officials said.
In Ryazan, a drone attack caused a fire at Rosneft’s refinery. Two sources familiar with the situation told Reuters that the refinery had been forced to shut down two primary oil refining units.
Russian President Vladimir Putin told western countries on Wednesday in an interview with state media that Russia was technically ready for nuclear war.
On the demand side, US crude oil stockpiles fell unexpectedly as processing increased and gasoline inventories decreased amid strong demand ahead of the summer driving season, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Wednesday.
