Futures gained 1 percent in New York after rising 1.6 percent the previous two sessions. The IEA boosted its forecast on stronger-than-expected consumption in Europe and the U.S., and said that inventories of refined products are subsiding to their five-year average. A six-month extension to supply curbs from the end of March is one of the options being considered by OPEC and its allies, according to a person familiar with the matter. Oil in New York has averaged about $49 a barrel this year as efforts to drain a global glut by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and partners including Russia are stifled by rising shale output. U.S. crude inventories expanded by 6.18 million barrels last week, according to industry data, as oil processors gradually restarted following Harvey. Click Read More below for more of the story.

“After a scant 0.1% decline in January, which wasn’t bad considering the harsh winter weather and California wildfires, truck tonnage had a robust gain in February” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “This outcome fits well with our growing optimism for the truck freight market after a two-year recession. Some of the gain in February was due to accelerated imports early in the year as shippers rushed to bring products into the U.S. before tariffs hit. Even accounting for this, the first two months of the year were positive, all things considered, indicating that the freight recovery has indeed begun.” In February, the ATA advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index equaled 115.2, up from 111.9 in January. The index, which is based on 2015 as 100, was up 0.6% from the same month last year, the second straight year-over-year increase, which hasn’t happened since early 2023. The not seasonally adjusted index, which calculates raw changes in tonnage hauled, equaled 104.8 in February, 4.7% below January’s reading of 110.0.