Crude oil prices edged higher on Thursday, lifted by reports that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) proposes to increase production cuts.
However, the rise was just modest, as Russia reportedly has not agreed to the recommendation from OPEC's technical committee, which recommended an additional cut of 0.6 million barrels a day to stabilize the market.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for March ended up $0.20, or about 0.4%, at $50.95 a barrel.
Brent crude futures were down by about $0.23 at $55.05 per barrel in late afternoon trades.
On Wednesday, WTI crude oil futures for March ended up $1.14, or 2.3%, at $50.75 a barrel.
Although there are reports that some breakthroughs have been made in developments in the treatments for the coronavirus, World Health Organization officials have damped down expectations of imminent breakthroughs.
The virus outbreak has reportedly claimed 563 lives in China and sparked fears of an economic slowdown in China.
Meanwhile, on the trade front, China said it would slash tariffs on $75 billion of U.S. imports in half as part of its efforts to implement a recently signed trade deal.
China's finance ministry said that from February 14, it would lower tariffs on some U.S. goods from 10% to 5% and on others from 5% to 2.5%.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company - www.instaforex.com
source http://www.mt5.com/forex_news/quickview/2151345/
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