WTI crude oil erased early losses and rose to the $90 per barrel mark on Thursday, extending the gains from the prior session as markets continued to assess volatile supply expectations amid heightened geopolitical turmoil in the Middle East. The increase extended the rally in crude oil benchmarks from the prior two weeks, as escalating tumult between Israel and Gaza ramped up concerns of supply disruptions among key producers in the Middle East. Additionally, new data from the EIA showed that crude oil stocks fell by nearly 5 million barrels on the week ending October 13th, well above market expectations of a 300 thousand barrel draw. Limiting the increase, the United States government broadly eased sanctions on the Venezuelan oil sector following a deal between Washington and Caracas that promotes fairness in the upcoming Venezuelan elections.
