Oil prices gain with decline in US dollar index

ANKARA

Crude oil prices were up at the trading start on Wednesday with gains as the American dollar index was down after the U.S. Senate failed to pass a coronavirus aid package to support the economy.

International benchmark Brent crude was trading at $28.12 per barrel at 0622GMT for a 4% increase after closing at $27.03 a barrel on Monday when it saw a daily 6.9% jump.

American benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was at $24.43 a barrel at the same time for a 4.6% gain after ending the previous session at $23.36 – recording an 8.3% daily increase.

The U.S. Senate failed Monday to pass a $2 trillion support package to mitigate the adverse impact of coronavirus on the world's largest economy and oil consumer.

The 49-46 vote, which was short of the 60 votes needed to clear the floor, was criticized by Democrats for containing insufficient support for hospitals and U.S. states, and instead focused on bolstering businesses and corporations.

After the vote, the U.S. dollar index, which includes a basket of currencies like the euro, Japanese yen, British pound, Canadian dollar, Swedish krona and Swiss franc, closed Monday at $102.11 with a 0.39% daily loss, having traded at $101.91 at 0622 GMT for a 0.19% decline.

Oil prices, which are indexed to the U.S. dollar, continue to be kept under pressure due to coronavirus-related weak oil demand around the world.