Investing.com - U.S. oil futures rose to fresh three-month highs on Friday, as an upbeat report by the International Energy Agency boosted hopes for a production cut.
U.S. crude futures for April delivery were last at a one-month high of $38.67 a barrel, up 2.19%.
On the ICE Futures Exchange in London, the April Brent contract jumped 1.67% to $40.72 a barrel.
Oil prices strengthened after the IEA said in a monthly report that oil might have bottomed and that low prices were beginning to impact crude production outside the OPEC.
The IEA also said that Iran's return to exporting, after international sanctions were lifted, was happening more gradually than expected.
Crude prices has slid lower on Thursday following reports that a meeting between OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers set for later this month to discuss an output freeze was unlikely to happen, as Iran had yet to commit to the proposal.
Oil was also hit on Thursday due a stronger dollar after the European Central Bank cut its benchmark interest rate to a record-low of zero from 0.05%. Market watchers had been expecting no change.
The central bank also cut the deposit facility rate deeper into negative territory, to minus 0.4% and cut the marginal lending rate cut to 0.25% from 0.30%.
In addition, the ECB boosted its quantitative easing program by €20 billion per month to €80 billion, starting in April.
But the ECB’s policy move was tempered by comments by ECB President Mario Draghi saying that the central bank did not anticipate that it will be necessary to reduce interest rates further, but added that this could change.