Investing.com - Crude oil futures were higher on Wednesday, as appetite for riskier assets improved amid hopes for more stimulus measures from the Chinese government.
On the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for October delivery tacked on 18 cents, or 0.36%, to trade at $49.70 a barrel during European morning hours. A day earlier, Brent futures soared $1.89, or 3.97%.
Asian equity markets rose sharply on Wednesday, tracking strong overnight gains on Wall Street, as speculation surrounding possible stimulus measures in China boosted risk appetite.
The Shanghai Composite tacked on 2.3%, one day after posting a late rally to end up 3%, while Japan's blue-chip Nikkei stock index soared 7.7%, the biggest one-day gain since 2008.
The upbeat sentiment carried over to European markets, where Germany's DAX, France’s CAC 40 and London's FTSE 100 were all up almost 2% in early trade.
In the U.S., Wall Street pointed to strong gains at the open, with the Dow futures up 200 points.
Gains were limited as ongoing worries over the health of the global economy fueled concerns that a global supply glut may stick around for longer than anticipated.
Global oil production is outpacing demand following a boom in U.S. shale oil production and after a decision by the OPEC last year not to cut production.
Elsewhere, crude oil for delivery in October on the New York Mercantile Exchange sank 5 cents, or 0.11%, to trade at $45.99 a barrel. On Tuesday, U.S. oil futures dipped 11 cents, or 0.24%, as a refinery closure weighed.
Market players looked ahead to fresh weekly information on U.S. stockpiles of crude and refined products to gauge the strength of demand in the world’s largest oil consumer.
The American Petroleum Institute will release its inventories report later in the day, while Thursday’s government report could show crude stockpiles rose by 0.1 million barrels in the week ended September 4.
The reports come out one day later than usual due to Monday's Labor Day holiday in the U.S.
Meanwhile, the spread between the Brent and the WTI crude contracts stood at $3.71 a barrel, compared to $3.58 by close of trade on Tuesday.