Crude Oil Prices Leap Over $50 a Barrel on Thursday

Jumping above $50 a barrel on Thursday, crude oil prices surged ahead for a third straight session, according to Bloomberg MarketWatch.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, May West Texas Intermediate crude rose 84 cents, or 1.7%, to settle at $50.35 a barrel.

On the London ICE Futures Exchange, May Brent crude, the global benchmark, rose 54 cents, or 1%, to end trading at $52.96. The Brent crude contract is set to expire at Friday’s settlement.

Meanwhile, prices for natural gas extended their decline after the EIA reported that U.S. natural gas supplies fell by 43 billion cubic feet for the week ending March 24. That matched the decline expected by analysts polled by S&P Global Platts.

Back on the New York Mercantile Exchange, May natural gas fell 4 cents, or 1.2%, to settle at $3.191 per million British thermal units.