LONDON: Crude prices approached $50 Wednesday as escalating wildfires in Canada’s oil sands region helped to reduce a global supply glut, while traders awaited key US energy inventory data.

Shortly after 1100 GMT, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in June was 14 cents higher at $48.45 a barrel.

Brent North Sea crude for July delivery rose 12 cents compared with Tuesday’s close to $49.40 a barrel. Crude futures had zoomed Tuesday to their highest points so far this year, as the wildfires forced thousands more people to evacuate.

WTI rallied Tuesday to $48.76 — the highest level since mid-October, 2015.

Brent had touched $49.75, not reached since early November.

The oil market has shot higher this week also after US banking giant Goldman Sachs said supply disruptions in Africa’s biggest oil producer Nigeria — along with better demand — had created a surprising short-term deficit.

It described the situation in Nigeria as “systemic” and said production in that country is likely to remain curtailed for the rest of the year.

Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2016