U.S. oil prices remained near two-year highs on Thursday as the shutdown of the Keystone pipeline and a drawdown in fuel inventories pointed to a tightening market, despite rising output, Reuters reported.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $57.95 a barrel at 0143 GMT, down 7 cents from their last settlement, but still close to 2015-highs of $58.15 a barrel reached the previous day.
Brent crude futures LCOc1, the international benchmark for oil prices, were at $63.19 per barrel, 13 cents below their last close.
WTI has been buoyed by the shutdown of the 590,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Keystone pipeline, one of the largest crude pipelines from Canada to the United States, as well as by another drawdown in commercial fuel inventories that came despite record U.S. oil production.
U.S. crude inventories C-STK-T-EIA fell 1.9 million barrels in the week to Nov. 17, to 457.14 million barrels. Stocks have dropped by 15 percent from their records in March, to below 2016 levels.
“Another large drawdown in inventories buoyed inves