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Crude oil prices moved higher on Thursday, extending recent gains, amid continued optimism about a pick up in energy demand, and falling supply levels in the market.
However, oil's uptick was halted somewhat due to tensions between the U.S. and China.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures ended up $0.43, or about 1.3%, at $33.92 a barrel.
Brent crude futures moved up $0.31, or 0.9%, to $36.06 a barrel.
Data from U.S. Energy Information Administration on Wednesday showed a 5-million barrels drop in crude stockpiles in the U.S. in the week ended May 15th.
OPEC members and other major oil producers, including Russia, have reduced output since May 1. It may be recalled that the OPEC+ agreed to cut production by as much as 9.7 million barrels per day from the beginning of this month.
