Oil prices climb 5% ahead of OPEC meeting

Oil prices rose more than 4% on Wednesday, still struggling to recoup losses of more than 16% in November, as major producers prepared to discuss how much of a threat the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus would pose to energy demand.

Brent crude futures for February rose $3.56, or 5.1%, to $72.79 a barrel at 10:48 GMT.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose $3.25, or 4.9%, to $69.43 a barrel. Both Brent and WTI front-month contracts in November posted their steepest monthly falls in percentage terms since March 2020, down 16% and 21% respectively.

Several OPEC+ ministers, though, have said there was no need to change course. But even if OPEC+ agrees to go ahead with its planned supply increase in January, producers may struggle to add that much.