Oil holds above $50/barrel on U.S. stocks draw, Brexit deal hopes

Oil prices edged down on Thursday but were holding well above $50 per barrel in light holiday trade as a drop in U.S. stockpiles spurred demand hopes, while hints of an imminent Brexit deal underpinned investors’ risk appetite.

Brent crude futures were down 40 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $50.80 a barrel at 1100 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down 36 cents, or 0.75 percent, to $47.76.

Both contracts gained more than 2 percent on Wednesday.

“Lower U.S. inventories of crude and fuels, as well as signs of a potential Brexit deal which led to weaker U.S. dollar, were good news,” said Hiroyuki Kikukawa, general manager of research at Nissan Securities.

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