Oil prices rose by more than two dollars today after China's announcement at the weekend of a massive local economic stimulus package was set to increase demand for crude, analysts said.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX), light sweet crude for delivery in December jumped $ 2.38 to $ 63.42 a barrel.
Brent North Sea crude for December was up $ 2.09 at $ 59.44 a barrel on London's InterContinental Exchange (ICE).
China's four-trillion-yuan ($ 586 bn) stimulus package aimed at boosting its economy would mean greater demand for commodities including oil, dealers said.
"China's stimulus package is significant," said David Moore, a Sydney-based strategist with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
"It will support China's economic growth and therefore demand for oil," he said.
The giant Asian nation is a major buyer of commodities and its thirst for oil imports to fuel its runaway economic growth in recent years was a key factor behind the surge in crude prices to record levels above $ 147 in July.
