24.04.201803:29:00UTC+00Brent Crude Climbs for Sixth Day as Supply Tightens on Rising Demand

Brent crude oil edged up for the sixth consecutive day on Tuesday, surpassing $75 per barrel, on bets that supplies will tighten due to fuel increasing at the same time the U.S. may hit Iran with sanctions and OPEC-led production cuts continue to be in place.

Brent crude oil futures edged up to as high as high as $75.20 per barrel in early trading on Tuesday, its highest level since November 27, 2014. Brent was last seen trading at $57 per barrel, up 29 cents or 0.4 percent from its last settlement.

The international benchmark's gaining streak is the biggest since a similar rally in December and it is up by over 20 percent from its 2018 low in February.

U.S. WTI crude futures stood at $68.98 per barrel, 34 cents or 0.5 percent from their last close. On Thursday, WTI climbed to as high as $69.56, the biggest since November 28, 2014.

Markets have been buoyed by supply cuts led by OPEC which were launched in 2017 with the objective of bolstering the prices of crude and rebalancing the market.

The potential of reimposed U.S. sanctions against Iran is also driving prices up. The U.S. has until May 12 to decide whether it will abandon the Iran nuclear deal and renew sanctions against the cartel's third biggest producer, which would further tighten global supplies.

OPEC's output curbs and the threat of new sanctions are occurring just as demand in Asia has risen to a record as new and expanded refineries start up from China to Vietnam.