Oil prices rise amid easing demand concerns

Oil prices jumped more than 2 percent on Wednesday as investors’ concerns for sluggish crude demand eased.

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for March delivery increased 1.14 U.S. dollars to settle at 50.75 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for April delivery added 1.32 dollars to close at 55.28 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

On data front, U.S. commercial crude oil inventories increased by 3.4 million barrels during the week ending Jan. 31, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

At 435 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories were about 2 percent below the five year average for this time of year, the administration said. Enditem