Oil prices rally as a rise in fuel demand tames recession concerns

• Oil prices jumped more than 2% early Thursday as a rebound in fuel demand tamed recession fears.
• West Texas Intermediate gained as much as 2.38%, while Brent, the international benchmark, moved roughly 2.13% higher.

Oil prices rallied Thursday, continuing the the rise from Wednesday, as a rebound in fuel demand helped ease recession concerns among investors.

West Texas Intermediate rose as much as 2.38% to hover above $99, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, moved as much as 2.13% higher to $108.38.

But prices pared gains slightly after the Commerce Department reported second-quarter GDP contracted by 0.9% to mark a second consecutive quarter of declines and a technical recession.

Meanwhile, US gasoline demand jumped 8.5% last week from the prior week, according to data from the Energy Information Administration on Wednesday.

US oil inventories fell by 4.5 million barrels to 422.1 million barrels last week, also helping crude prices, as exports jumped 21% to hit a record high.

Now, markets will be watching for G7 leaders to impose a price cap on Russian barrels later this year. For the new sanction to be effective, however, top buyers like China and India must be on board.