United Kingdom

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Friday, hitting three-month highs, as upbeat economic data from China and the United States indicated an end to the trade war between Washington and Beijing has restored confidence in the global growth.

Brent crude was up 29 cents, or 0.4%, at $68.21 a barrel at 0903 GMT.

The West Texas Intermediate CLc1 was up 24 cents, or 0.4%, at $61.92 a barrel.

Volume of oil trade remained thin in the Christmas holidays and New Year breaks.

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil rose further above $67 a barrel to its highest in over three months on Thursday, buoyed by a report showing lower U.S. crude inventories, by hopes of an end to the China-U.S. trade dispute and OPEC-led efforts to constrain supply.

The American Petroleum Institute, an oil industry group, said late on Tuesday that U.S. crude stocks fell by 7.9 million barrels last week, much more than the decline forecast by analysts.

LONDON/TOKYO (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Tuesday in thin pre-Christmas trading after Russia said cooperation with OPEC on supply cuts would continue and amid signs Saudi Arabia and Kuwait could take as much as a year to bring a major field back to full capacity.

Brent crude LCOc1 was up 30 cents, or 0.45%, at $66.69 a barrel by 1321 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate CLc1 was 23 cents higher at $60.75 a barrel.

LONDON (AP) — Queen Elizabeth II plans to acknowledge that both Britain and her family have endured a difficult year by saying during her Christmas message that it has been a “bumpy” time.

The pre-recorded message will be broadcast in Britain and the Commonwealth nations on Christmas Day. It was recorded before the queen’s husband, Prince Philip, was hospitalized in London as a precautionary measure.

Excerpts released by Buckingham Palace before the speech show the queen admits difficulties during the course of the year.

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil was little changed on Monday, holding near a three-month high on optimism over a nearing U.S.-China trade deal even as Russia said an OPEC-led pact may consider easing output cuts next year.

Brent crude LCOc1 was down 2 cents, or 0.03%, at $66.12 per barrel by 1410 GMT in thin trading ahead of the Christmas holiday. West Texas Intermediate CLc1 was down 5 cents, or 0.08%, at $60.39 a barrel.

LONDON, Dec 20 (APP): Pakistan’s High Commissioner Mohammad Nafees Zakaria Friday drew the attention of international community towards the plight of Kashmiris as their silence in that regard was emboldening India to continue human right violations in the Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJK).

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain has approved Advent International’s $5 billion purchase of defense company Cobham (COB.L) after the U.S. private equity group made commitments to address national security concerns.

Business minister Andrea Leadsom had put the deal on hold to review the sale of air-to-air refueling equipment maker Cobham, which employs 10,000 people and also makes communications equipment for military vehicles.

20 Dec 2019; MEMO: Britain’s newly elected Conservative government has confirmed it will proceed with banning “institutions across the public sector” including local councils from boycotting Israel, as promised in the party’s election manifesto.

London, Dec 20 (AFP/PTI) Britain's freshly-elected parliament prepared on Friday to move past years of partisan wrangling and initially approve Prime Minister Boris Johnson's divorce deal with the EU.

The all-but-certain outcome in the lower House of Commons will help Johnson on his way towards meeting his winning campaign promise to "get Brexit done" on January 31.

But it will also push London and Brussels closer to another cliff edge at the end of 2020 that might disrupt decades of unfettered trade.

20 December 2019; AFP: Britain's freshly-elected parliament prepared on Friday to move past years of partisan wrangling and initially approve Prime Minister Boris Johnson's divorce deal with the EU.

The all-but-certain outcome in the lower House of Commons will help Johnson on his way towards meeting his winning campaign promise to "get Brexit done" on January 31.

But it will also push London and Brussels closer to another cliff edge at the end of 2020 that might disrupt decades of unfettered trade.