OIL

BRENT oil advanced yesterday amid speculation that Opec may reduce output at a meeting next week to bolster prices. West Texas intermediate (WTI) was steady after US inventories unexpectedly increased.

Brent for January rose 0.4 percent to $78.75 a barrel (R5.48 a litre) on the Londonbased ICE Futures Europe exchange in the afternoon. WTI for December delivery, which expires today, was little changed at $74.62 at 10.55am in New York. Prices initially slid after the inventory report.

The 12-member group should cut output by 500 000 barrels a day, Libya’s Opec governor Samir Kamal said yesterday.

Bill O’Grady at Confluence Investment Management said: “The likelihood of Opec making a cut seems to be increasing. Taking just 500 000 barrels off the market would make a difference.”

US stockpiles rose 2.61 million barrels to 381.1 million last week, the Energy Information Administration said. – Bloomberg