Oil gains before US stockpiles data as China tackles Omicron variant

Oil rose as traders looked ahead to clues on US stockpiles, while monitoring China’s efforts to contain the spread of Omicron.
 
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) added 0.9 per cent after capping a two-day drop. The industry-funded American Petroleum Institute releases its weekly report on US inventories later on Tuesday.
 
Nationwide holdings have sunk for the past six weeks to the lowest since September, show the official data. Separately, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) issues its short-term market outlook.
 
Crude oil has made a positive start to 2022 on expectations demand will continue to expand as the pandemic evolves, tightening the market.

 
The climb has come despite the spread of the Omicron virus variant, including outbreaks in China, the largest crude oil importer.
 
Supply halts in Libya and Kazakhstan also aided prices, as have capacity constraints faced by some Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries members.