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Venezuela@
* Brent, WTI up to the highest since November 2018
* The optimism of the commercial discussions also supports the markets
* Increased US production could undermine OPEC efforts
* Gross yield and drilling levels in the United States: https://tmsnrt.rs/2Eh2i9w (Add a chart, update prices)
SINGAPORE, Feb. 18 (Reuters) – Oil prices hit their highest level since last November, thanks to OPEC supply cuts and US sanctions against Iran and Venezuela.
The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures contract broke the $ 56-a-barrel mark for the first time this year, reaching $ 56.13 a barrel before falling back to $ 56.02 a barrel at 0112 GMT, up 0.8% from their last agreement.
International Brent futures reached a high of $ 66.78 per barrel before rising to $ 66.65 per barrel, up 0.6% from their last closing price.
For both benchmarks, this was their highest level since November 20, 2018.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), as well as some unaffiliated producers such as Russia, agreed at the end of last year to cut output by 1.2 million barrels a day to prevent a significant swelling of the offer.
US sanctions against oil exporters and OPEC members, Iran and Venezuela, have also pushed up crude prices.
Traders said that financial markets, including crude futures, were also backed by the hope that the US and China would soon settle their trade disputes, which dampened global economic growth.
"Positive signs in the US-China trade negotiations have helped strengthen the sentiment of the markets," ANZ Bank said on Monday.
The increase in crude oil production in the United States at least partially offset the decline in supply.
And there are signs that US production will continue to increase.
US energy companies have increased three times the number of oil rigs in search of new production, reaching a total of 857, announced energy services firm Baker Hughes in a weekly report last Friday. RIG-OL-USA-
This means that the number of US platforms is higher than a year ago, when fewer than 800 platforms were active.
(Report by Henning Gloystein, edited by Joseph Radford and Richard Pullin)
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