Oil prices jumped this evening, despite news of a surprise gain in US crude reserves, as traders reacted to a raft of positive economic data in the key energy-consuming nation. Brent crude leapt $1.85 to $85.10 a barrel, while US crude soared $1.73 to $82.98.
The US government's Department of Energy announced this afternoon that US crude oil inventories rose by one million barrels in the week ending November 19. That confounded market expectations for a heavier drop of 1.9 million. Rising stockpiles are usually a signal of weaker demand.
But crude futures were propelled higher as positive news on unemployment, consumer spending and wages bolstered belief that the US economic recovery was far from dead.
The oil market remains under pressure, meanwhile, amid stubborn fears over the impact of the euro zone debt crisis and simmering tensions on the Korean peninsula.
