Crude oil futures ended higher on Thursday, extending their previous session’s gains, after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies (OPEC+) announced their decision about output cuts. OPEC+ announced that they have reached an agreement to pare current production cuts of 7.7 million barrels per day to 7.2 million barrels per day beginning in January. Some support also came in as Britain approved Pfizer Inc.’s Covid-19 vaccine, clearing the way for mass inoculation. Meanwhile, the US FDA is holding its advisory committee next week to confirm a vaccine rollout plan, while the European Medicines Agency is likely to give emergency approval on December 29th.
Crude oil futures for January rose $0.36 or 0.8 percent to settle at $45.64 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. February Brent crude gained $0.60 or 1.23 percent to settle at $48.85 a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.