TOKYO, April 12 (Reuters) - Oil rose on Monday amid hopes
that fuel demand is picking up in the United States as the
summer driving season approaches and the rollout of COVID-19
vaccinations there accelerates, though increasing case numbers
in other countries are set to cap gains.
Brent LCOc1 was up 25 cents, or 0.4%, at $63.20 a barrel
by 0155 GMT. U.S. crude CLc1 gained 17 cents, or 0.3%, to
$59.49 a barrel.
Prices have changed little since a period of volatile
trading ended with the close of trading last Monday.
"An unsettling calm has enveloped oil markets recently as
Brent remains anchored around $63 and traders adopt a
wait=and-see range-trade mentality," said Stephen Innes, chief
market strategist at Axi.
While the United States has fully vaccinated more than 70
million people, and in Europe new infection numbers are falling
as lockdowns take effect, India is reporting record new cases
and other parts of Asia are seeing caseloads rise.
That is likely to continue to "sully the global travel
outlook" and keep prices rangebound as the summer approaches,
Innes said.
The U.S. economy is at an "inflection point" amid
expectations that growth and hiring will accelerate in the
months ahead, but faces the risk of reopening too quickly and
sparking a resurgence in coronavirus cases, Federal Reserve
Chair Jerome Powell said in an interview broadcast on Sunday.
"There really are risks out there. And the principal one
just is that we will reopen too quickly, people will too quickly
return to their old practices, and we'll see another spike in
cases," Powell said in a CBS interview, recorded on Wednesday.