MARKET NEWS

(Bloomberg) -- Oil rose for the fourth day in five, with pockets of strength in physical markets supportive of wider sentiment.

Brent gained toward $83 a barrel after rising by 1.1% on Monday, while West Texas Intermediate neared $78. There have been signs of recent buying activity from refineries in the US and China, which has pushed prices of American grades higher. Timespreads have also strengthened, signaling near-term tightness.

Against that backdrop, traders will be watching for more on the outlook from participants at International Energy Week in London, a major industry gathering that begins later on Tuesday. Russell Hardy, chief executive officer of Vitol Group, is among scheduled speakers on the opening day.

Oil is grinding its way toward a second monthly advance, although it’s yet to break decisively out of its recent, narrow range. While tensions in the Middle East and OPEC+ supply curbs have supported crude prices, higher production from outside the group, especially the US, has capped the gains.

The market’s opposing drivers have prompted both Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Bank of America Corp. to predict that rangebound trading will persist in the near term. Goldman sees a $20 band centered on $80 a barrel, with muted volatility, while its rival expects oil to hold between $60 and $80.

“While crude oil markets have been trading in a range, they’ve performed relatively well, year-to-date, especially considering the weakness of the broader commodity complex,” said Han Zhong Liang, an investment strategist at Standard Chartered Plc. Better-than-expected compliance from OPEC+ members with supply curbs has been supportive, he added.

Brent’s prompt spread — the difference between its two nearest contracts — has been widening into a deeper backwardation pattern, suggesting tighter conditions. The gap was 89 cents a barrel, up from 37 cents four weeks ago. The corresponding metric for US benchmark WTI has also strengthened.