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Oil prices climbed on Thursday to extend gains from the previous session despite official data showing a surprise build in crude oil inventories.
Benchmark Brent crude futures rose about 1 percent to $72.95 a barrel, while U.S. crude futures were up 1.2 percent at $71.11. Both contracts jumped over 4 percent in the previous session.
According to data released by Energy Information Administration (EIA), crude inventories in the U.S. rose by about 2.1 million barrels last week, as against expectations for a 4.5 million drop.
Investors drew some comfort from the positive aspects of the report showing strong gasoline demand and a rebound in distillate fuels.
Gasoline stockpiles dropped by 100,000 barrels last week, while distillate stockpiles declined by about 1.3 million barrels.
The EIA report also showed a drop in crude stockpiles at the storage hub in Cushing, Oklahoma, to the lowest level in about seven months.
Oil prices have been rebounding over the last two days after plunging around 7 percent on Monday on growing worries over surging cases of the more transmissible Delta variant of the coronavirus and an agreement between top producers to add supply.
