Brent crude tops $40 as Biden’s win buoys risk-taking

Brent crude tops $40 as Biden’s win buoys risk-taking

Oil jumped by almost 10% on Monday for its biggest daily gain in more than six months after Pfizer announced promising results for its COVID-19 vaccine candidate and Saudi Arabia said an OPEC+ oil output deal could be adjusted to balance the market.Brent crude was up $3.37, or 8.5%, to $42.82 a barrel at 1402 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up $3.54, or 9.5%, at $40.68.Both contracts rose more than $4 earlier in the session."Asset prices move faster than the real economy, and oil and other risk assets are reacting positively today to the Pfizer vaccine news," said BNP Paribas analyst Harry Tchilinguirian.Pfizer said its experimental vaccine was more than 90% effective in preventing COVID-19, based on initial data from a large study. "In the eyes of traders,