(Bloomberg) -- Oil advanced as China signaled renewed desire to settle the trade war with the U.S. that has disrupted global energy demand.
Futures rose as much as 1.7% in New York on Thursday. Chinese Vice Premier Liu He invited U.S. President Donald Trump’s top trade negotiator to discuss the long-running dispute. In a Beijing speech, Liu also disclosed domestic economic reforms that touch on some of Trump’s key demand, according to people who attended the event and asked not to be identified.
“Chinese trade talk circumstances have been the ultimate barometer for the market,” said Tom Finlon, director of Energy Analytics Group in Wellington, Florida.
Oil has declined about 13% since touching a 2019 high in late April amid ample worldwide crude supplies and threats to worldwide demand for petroleum-based fuels.
West Texas Intermediate for January delivery rose 82 cents to $57.83 a barrel at 10:18 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Brent for January settlement rose 82 cents to $63.22 on the London-based ICE (NYSE:ICE) Futures Europe Exchange. The global benchmark crude traded at a $5.39 premium to WTI.
The prospect of a trade deal came just hours after the U.S. government said crude stockpiles at a key storage hub dwindled by the most in three months. Diesel inventories also dropped, the Energy Information Administration said in a report on Wednesday.
