Oil wipes out most of its pandemic losses and hits its highest since March, as a vaccine rollout turns traders bullish on 2021

Oil wipes out most of its pandemic losses and hits its highest since March, as a vaccine rollout turns traders bullish on 2021

Oil rallied to its highest in eight months, as the likely imminent rollout of a COVID-19 vaccine ignited optimism over a pickup in demand next year.

Brent crude futures market shows traders are finally betting on a sustained recovery in global fuel consumption.

"Though global oil demand is still well below the 2019 level, the visible path for the coming oil demand rebound is now clear for everyone to see," SEB chief commodities strategist Bjarne Schieldrop said.

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The oil price rose for a third day on Tuesday, reaching its highest since March, as the imminent rollout of COVID-19 vaccines breathed life into the prospect of a significant pickup in demand from early next year.

Oil was one of the worst-affected asset classes by the onset of the pandemic, as most global road, air and maritime traffic ground to a halt and factories and businesses around the world shut down temporarily.

A set of announcements of promising COVID-19 vaccine candidates from US drugmakers Pfizer and Moderna, as well as UK rival AstraZeneca, this month have triggered a 10% rise