Benchmark futures settled 3.9% higher after another session of sharp price moves. Searing temperatures in parts of the region and global competition for liquefied natural gas continue to provide upward pressure — even as flows from Norway, Europe’s top supplier, return to levels last seen in April.

Brent had added 5 cents, or 0.1%, to $81.41 per barrel, WTI rose 9 cents, or 0.1%, to $76.98.

The Brent crude oil spot price will average $80 per barrel (b) in 4Q23 and $84/b in 2024.

According to price reporting agency Argus Media, Urals crude topped $60 a barrel on Wednesday, climbing above the cap that the Group of Seven set last year in an attempt to restrict revenue to Moscow’s war machine.

Brent were up 20 cents, or 0.3%, at $76.72 a barrel, WTI gained 19 cents, also 0.3%, to $71.99 a barrel.

UAE energy minister Suhail al-Mazrouei said the voluntary OPEC+ cuts would bear fruit soon and blamed the current market malaise on the disconnect between physical and paper traders.

Brent rose 16 cents or 0.2% to stand at $74.67, WTI gained 8 cents or 0.1% to $69.95.

Asian demand has also led to Saudi Aramco's optimism about the global oil market's prospects for the rest of the year, its CEO Amin H. Nasser said at the conference, adding that oil market fundamentals remain "generally sound".

Brent slipped 51 cents, or 0.4%, to $73.76 a barrel, WTI were down 42 cents, or 0.6%, at $69.09.

While renewable power generation from wind and solar continues to capture much of the peak power demand in The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, demand for gas-fired cooling is also up.