Oil markets edged higher Wednesday ahead of the weekly update on U.S. oil inventories, with investors feeling confident that the world's main oil producers will agree to cut output on the back of the dramatic cut in demand and prices following the coronavirus outbreak.

AT 9:25 AM ET (1335 GMT), U.S. crude futures traded 3.2% higher at $24.39 a barrel, while the international benchmark Brent contract was up 0.7 at $32.09. Both contracts were trading above $60 at the start of the year.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies, including Russia, are scheduled to meet Thursday, to discuss cutting supply to try and balance a market which has been hit by an unprecedented hit to demand on the back of the lockdown measures taken globally to curtail the coronavirus.

Source: Investing.com