Oil prices advanced on Wednesday, driven by a weaker U.S. dollar and a fall in U.S. gasoline stockpiles, Trend reports citing Xinhua.
The West Texas Intermediate for December delivery increased 2.59 U.S. dollars, or 3 percent, to settle at 87.91 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for December delivery added 2.17 dollars, or 2.3 percent, to settle at 95.69 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
Lending buoyancy to the prices was a retreat in the U.S. currency. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, fell 1.13 percent to 109.7010 in late trading on Wednesday, following a 0.9 percent slide in the prior session. Historically, the price of oil is inversely related to the price of the U.S. dollar.