Oil prices rose again in Asian trade on Monday after reaching their highest prices of the year in the previous session due to a sharp drop in US reserves under the pressure of tightened global supplies, BTA reported, citing Reuters.

Futures for Brent crude from the North Sea, which is a reference for the European market, added 16 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $96.71 a barrel.

U.S. light crude rose 20 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $93.88 a barrel.

U.S. reserves fell 2.2 million barrels to 416.3 million barrels, according to government data released on Monday. Analysts had expected a drop of about 320,000 barrels.

Oil inventories in Cushing, Oklahoma, a storage center and major U.S. futures delivery point, fell 943,000 barrels a little below 22 million barrels, their lowest level since July 2022, the data showed. Stocks in Cushing are close to their lowest level ever due to strong demand for crude oil for refining and export, which has raised concerns about the quality of the remaining quantity and concerns that it could lead to a decline below minimum operating levels.

The decline in inventories is also the result of a total of 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd) contraction by Saudi Arabia and Russia, which will last at least until the end of the year.

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