Oil benchmarks moved to the upside in early trading hours on Thursday, with inventories data contributing to gains but the geopolitical tension in the Korean peninsula limiting the movement.

The US West Texas Intermediate crude futures traded 0.36 percent higher at $49.74 per barrel as of 07:00 GMT, while the London based Brent contracts on the ICE Futures Exchange in London were up 0.44 percent to $52.93 a barrel.

Oil futures settled in green territory on Wednesday following a sharp decline in US crude reserves in the week ended August 4, although a rise in gasoline supplies capped gains.

The US Energy Information Administration said crude reserves fell by 6.5 million barrels against expectations for a 2.7 million barrels reduction. Gasoline stockpiles, on the contrary, increased by 3.4 million barrels compared to analysts expected decline of 1.5 million barrels. Distillate products decreased by 1.7 million barrels, outperforming an estimated drop of 131,000 barrels.

A day earlier, the American Petroleum Institute reported a crude inventories drop of 7.8 million barrels to a total of 478.4 million barrels.

As the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries ended its two day meeting in Abu Dhabi, it noted that “countries remain steadfast in their commitment to fulfill” the output cuts agreement until March 2018. Compliance continues to be a big question for investors.

Ahead in the week, oilfield services provider Baker Hughes will present its weekly oil rig count on Friday as of 17:00 GMT.