Investing.com - Oil prices pushed higher in European trade on Thursday, extending overnight gains, amid speculation weekly supply data due later in the session will show U.S. crude inventories fell at a faster pace than expected last week.
Crude oil for August delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange inched up 33 cents, or 0.7%, to trade at $47.76 a barrel by 07:53GMT, or 3:53AM ET, after climbing 83 cents, or 1.78%, a day earlier.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for September delivery tacked on 30 cents, or 0.61%, to $49.10. On Wednesday, London-traded Brent futures rose 84 cents, or 1.75%.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration will release its weekly report on oil supplies at 15:00GMT, or 11:00AM ET, amid expectations for a drop of 2.3 million barrels.
Gasoline stockpiles are expected to decline by 353,000 barrels while stocks of distillates, which include heating oil and diesel, are forecast to increase by 31,000 barrels, according to analysts.
The report comes out one day later than usual due to the Independence Day holiday in the U.S. on Monday.
After markets closed Wednesday, the American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, said that U.S. oil inventories fell by 6.7 million barrels in the week ended July 1.
Signs of a potential recovery in U.S. drilling activity remained in focus. According to oilfield services provider Baker Hughes, the number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. rose by 11 last week to 341, marking the fourth increase in five weeks.
The renewed gain in U.S. drilling activity fueled speculation that domestic production could be on the verge of rebounding in the weeks ahead, underlining worries over a supply glut.