Oil Prices Rally as WTI Crude Hits Highest Level Since July

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — WTI Nymex futures were over 0.7 percent in the green, increasing to $49.71 per barrel by 06:25 GMT, reaching the highest point since late July. Brent crude hit $49.82 per barrel, reaching record highs since October, before wiping out gains and falling to $49.63 per barrel by 06:30 GMT.

The rise in prices comes ahead of an Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meeting due to take place on Thursday in Vienna. While no specific agenda has been disclosed, an Iranian delegation, led by Petroleum Minister Bijan Zangeneh, is expected to attend.

It is uncertain whether OPEC members will discuss freezing oil output following the Doha meeting in April, when OPEC and major non-OPEC oil producers failed to agree on freezing oil output at January levels to shore up prices. Saudi Arabia backed out of the deal, insisting that Iran, which has been boosting oil production after years of international sanctions, should be part of any production cuts.

Global oil prices plunged from $115 to less than $30 per barrel between June 2014 and January 2016, hitting their lowest levels since 2003 amid the ongoing glut in global oil supply and causing significant problems for energy companies and oil-producing countries. Prices have rebounded since January, gaining over 70 percent by May. By mid-May, the Brent crude benchmark approached the price of $50 per barrel.