LONDON, June 15: World oil prices climbed higher on Thursday on ongoing supply concerns and prospects of higher Chinese demand for energy, analysts said.

New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in July, climbed 96 cents to $70.10 per barrel in pit trading.

In London, Brent North Sea crude for July delivery gained 72 cents to $67.70 per barrel in electronic deals.Reports of China’s strong industrial growth in May boosted expectations that the world’s most populous nation may further increase its energy intake to fuel its economic expansion, dealers said.

The National Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday that China's industrial output picked up in May with a year-on-year gain of 17.9pc, in a further illustration of the Asian nation’s stubbornly strong economic momentum.

“China grew faster than expected... so this is definitely bullish for prices,” said Dariusz Kowalczyk, a Hong Kong-based investment strategist with CFC Seymour.

Kowalczyk said prices were being supported also by a decline in US crude stocks in the United States.

The US Department of Energy (DoE) released its weekly inventory report Wednesday showing a rise in US reserves of gasoline but a dip in crude stocks.

Crude inventories fell 900,000 barrels to 345.7 million barrels in the week to June 9, the DoE added. Analysts had expected a fall of 700,000 barrels.

Meanwhile, traders tracked events in Iran as well as the start of the hurricane season which last year caused severe damage to US energy installations and led to soaring crude prices.

“The prospect of another active Atlantic hurricane season should mean there is the potential for a sharp spike higher in prices in the event of another tropical storm developing,” analysts at the Sucden brokerage said.

“The spectre of last year's record hurricane season, where nearly a quarter of US oil and gas production was taken offline, remains hanging over the market.”—AFP