OREANDA-NEWS. The cost of the January futures contract for Brent crude oil rose by more than 2 %, to 46.02 US dollars per barrel as of 09:35 UTC. This is evidenced by data from the Intercontinental Exchange in London. The price of Brent crude exceeded 46 dollars for the first time since September 2.

WTI crude oil futures for January delivery grew by 1.82 %, to 43.19 dollars per barrel.

Oil prices accelerated the rise amid expectations of the extension of the existing agreements to limit the production of oil by OPEC+ countries. An additional positive matter for the commodity market was the information about the progress in the development of vaccines against COVID-19, as well as expectation of an imminent start of their use, which should help avoid new tough quarantine measures and support the demand for fuel.

Barclays experts predict that the average price for Brent crude oil in 2021 will be 53 dollars, and the cost of WTI will reach 50 dollars per barrel.