Oil Futures Rally To Highest Finish In Nearly 5 Weeks

Oil futures rallied Wednesday to settle at their highest level since late October after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries announced its first agreement in eight years to cut its crude production. January West Texas Intermediate crude rose $4.21, or 9.3%, to settle at $49.44 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the highest since Oct. 27 and prices scored their strongest one-day percentage gain since February, according to FactSet data. It gained about 5.5% for the month, based on the most-active contracts.