West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent crude oil prices posted increases on the final trading day of 2020.
The February WTI futures price gained 12 cents, settling at $48.52 per barrel. The light crude marker Thursday traded within a range from $47.77 to $48.58.
Brent crude for March delivery finished Thursday’s session at $51.80 per barrel, reflecting a 17-cent gain.
Although oil prices have recovered since plunging this past spring amid steep pandemic-driven demand destruction, the benchmarks are still 20-plus percent overall for the year. By comparison, the closing WTI and Brent per-barrel prices on Jan. 2, 2020, were $61.18 (21 percent higher) and $66.25 (22 percent higher), respectively.
The price of a gallon of reformulated gasoline (RBOB) often moves in the same direction as the oil benchmarks, but such was not the case Thursday. January RBOB posted a slight loss – well under a penny – to close just below $1.41.
Henry Hub natural gas futures finished higher, with the February contract adding nearly 12 cents to settle at $2.54.
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