Investing.com - Oil prices were higher for the sixth straight session on Thursday, with Brent climbing above the $50-level for the first time since early July amid bullish momentum.
On the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for October delivery touched an intraday peak of $50.33 a barrel, the most since July 4. It was last at $50.20 by 9:40AM ET (13:40GMT), up 35 cents, or 0.7%.
London-traded Brent prices rose 62 cents, or 1.26%, on Wednesday. The international benchmark has gained nearly 17% in August so far amid indications major oil producers are reconsidering a collective production freeze in a bid to boost the market.
The rally started last Thursday after Saudi Arabia’s energy minister said the country would work with other oil producers to stabilize prices at a meeting in Algeria next month.
Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Monday his country is opening up to an agreement with other major oil producers to cap output "if necessary" to achieve market stability.
However, market players remained skeptical that the meeting would result in any concrete actions after Saudi Arabia signaled that it could boost its output to a new record level in August.
An attempt to jointly freeze production levels earlier this year failed after Saudi Arabia backed out over Iran's refusal to take part of the initiative, underscoring the difficulty for political rivals to forge consensus.
Meanwhile, crude oil for September delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange tacked on 72 cents, or 1.54%, to trade at $47.51 a barrel after hitting a session high of $47.63, a level not seen since July 7.
On Wednesday, New York-traded oil futures tacked on 21 cents, or 0.45%. The U.S. benchmark is up more than 13% so far this month.
Weekly supply data released Wednesday showed that both U.S. crude and gasoline supplies drop more than forecast last week.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, crude oil inventories fell by 2.5 million barrels to 521.1 million. The report also showed that gasoline supplies decreased by 2.7 million barrels, much more than the expected 1.6-million-barrel decline.
Despite recent gains, indications of an ongoing recovery in U.S. drilling activity combined with elevated stocks of fuel products around the world is expected to keep prices under pressure in the near-term.