Oil prices continued to rise on Thursday hitting a new high not seen since 2014 at the time US crude supply decreased, after sources told Reuters that Saudi Arabia looks to push prices higher.
Brent crude benchmark touched $74.75 a barrel, its highest since November 27, 2014, the day OPEC decided to pump as much as it could to defend market share which led the prices decrease to just over $27 in 2015.
US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures settled 98 cents higher at $68.45, and the WTI earlier hit $69.56, their highest since November 28, 2014.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other major producers including Russia began in 2017 an agreement to curb their production.
OPEC and its partners are expected to meet in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Friday, after which the organization will meet on June 22 to review its oil production policy.
Reuters reported on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia would be happy for crude to reach $80 or even $100 a barrel, viewed as a sign that Riyadh will not seek changes to the supply pact.
A global oil glut has been virtually eliminated, according to a joint OPEC and non-OPEC technical panel, two sources familiar with the matter said, thanks in part to an OPEC-led supply cut deal in place since January 2017.
A source familiar with the matter said that OPEC's Joint Technical Committee found that inventories in developed nations in March were at just 12 million barrels above the five-year average.
The declared goal of reducing supplies is to reduce the surplus of oil stocks to an average of five years, but a number of oil ministers said other measures must be taken into account.
Brent crude surged above Dubai's price to $4.30 a barrel, its highest since January 2016, amid strong performance of European benchmark crude, based on Reuters' data.
Rising price differentials encourage Asian consumers to buy crude from Russia and the Middle East, which is priced in comparison to Dubai, while reducing the crude consumption of the Atlantic associated with Brent.
