ANKARA, Nov 3 — Oil prices increased in early trade today due to a weaker dollar as a result of the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) decision to leave interest rates constant, while alleviating concerns for financial sector investors, reported Anadolu.

International benchmark crude Brent traded at US$87.01 (RM411) per barrel at 10.17 am local time (0717 GMT), a 0.18 per cent rise from the closing price of US$86.85 a barrel in the previous trading session yesterday.

The American benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) traded at the same time at US$82.84 per barrel, up 0.46 per cent from Thursday’s close of US$82.46 per barrel.

The Fed’s decision to hold the federal funds rate steady between the 5.25 per cent and 5.5 per cent target range prevented a widely anticipated interest rate hike, causing the dollar to weaken in support of higher oil prices.

Despite the fact that the Fed has avoided raising interest rates now for the third time, having done so previously in June and September, the federal funds rate remains at its highest level in 22 years.

Meanwhile, supply concerns caused by the conflict between Israel and Palestine continue to impact oil prices.

However, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported on Wednesday that US commercial crude oil stocks rose by 0.2 per cen during the week ending October 27, which limited upward price pressures.

The data indicated that US inventories rose by around 800,000 barrels to 421.9 million barrels, compared to the American Petroleum Institute’s expectation of a rise of around 1.3 million barrels. — Bernama-Anadolu