Oil prices rose in Thursday's trading, in light of the tensions in the Middle East region, and the rise came despite US data on black gold stocks.

By 09:10 Moscow time, US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose by 0.46% to $74.20 per barrel, while global Brent crude futures rose by 0.47% to $79.58 per barrel.

The rise in oil prices came despite data showing that oil inventories in the United States rose more than expected last week.

Data from the US Energy Information Administration revealed yesterday that oil inventories increased by 5.5 million barrels during the week ending the second of February, while expectations indicated an increase of 1.7 million barrels.