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Oil prices rise as Brexit vote begins

Xinhua, June 24, 2016 Adjust font size:

Oil prices ended higher on Thursday as investors bet the UK will vote to remain in the European Union in the closely-watched Britain's Brexit referendum.

Voters have been going to polling stations Thursday to cast their votes to decide whether Britain will stay in or leave the European Union.

The ballot counting will start as soon as the polls close at 10 p.m. local time (2100 GMT). A total of 382 counting areas will be set up, with 380 located in England, Wales and Scotland, one in Northern Ireland and one in Gibraltar.

The outcome is expected to be officially declared at the Manchester Town Hall in the early hours of Friday.

According to six main opinion polls from June 18 to 22, the "Leave" camp was tied with the "Remain" camp. The crude prices rose on Thursday as investors' appetite for riskier assets like oil increased after concerns about Britain's possible exit from the European Union diminished.

Oil prices were also supported by a weaker dollar on Thursday. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was down 0.17 percent at 93.552 in late trading.

A weaker U.S. dollar lifted investor sentiment, which made the dollar-denominated oil more attractive for holders of other currencies.

The West Texas Intermediate for August delivery added 98 cents to settle at 50.11 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for August delivery increased 1.03 U.S. dollars to close at 50.91 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange. Enditem