2019.02.1505:36:00UTC+00Oil Prices Hit 2019 Highs Amid Supply Cuts

Oil prices extended recent gains on Friday, with Brent crude futures briefly hitting 2019 highs above $65 per barrel, helped by OPEC-led supply cuts and the announcement of an even deeper cut by Saudi Arabia.

Global benchmark Brent crude rose 0.3 percent to $64.76 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 0.1 percent at $54.46 per barrel.

OPEC cut nearly 800,000 barrels of output per day in January, just short of its goal of cutting 812,000 bpd, in a bid to tighten the oil market.

Top exporter and de facto OPEC leader Saudi Arabia said earlier this week that it plans to produce around 9.8 million barrels per day of oil in March, over half a million bpd below its pledged production level.

Oil prices also remained supported by the partial closure of Safaniya offshore oil fields in Saudi Arabia and optimism over U.S.-China trade negotiations.