(Bloomberg), Oil trades near its highest level in nearly eight weeks, driven by strength in the products markets and US gasoline at unimaginable levels.

After a four day advance to its highest close since March 23, West Texas Intermediate was unchanged at $114 per barrel. Only a few more weeks are left before US summer driving seasons, gasoline is at an all time high thanks to rising demand and restrained refining capabilities.

WTI (the US benchmark oil) has been increasing at an even faster rate than it was in previous sessions. The global indicator fell last week and WTI gained. That’s eroded its usual discount to Brent, and the pair now trade near parity.

As supplies were tightened by the conflict in Europe, crude oil prices rose more than 50%. However, demand for oil from other countries than China has increased. While oil prices rose by more than 50% this year, Russia and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries have been slow to restore production.

In Europe, a drive by the European Union to ban imports of Russian crude over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine has been delayed amid opposition from Hungary. Josep Borrell, the bloc’s foreign policy chief, said the foreign ministers had decided to pass the deadlock back to ambassadors for more deliberations.

“The EU’s rising tensions with Russia and the resulting uncertainties over the the bloc’s oil-and-gas supply remain front-and-center,” said Vandana Hari, founder of Vanda (NASDAQ:) Insights in Singapore. “Having said that, with a $10 jump since last Tuesday, it’s hard to see much more upside in crude unless events take a sudden turn for the worse.”

US crude oil stockpiles in Cushing (Oklahoma) have fallen by around a quarter of a percent this year. The delivery point for US benchmark futures stockpiles fell by approximately 2.629m barrels over the week ending May 13. This is according to traders who cited data from Wood Mackenzie Ltd.

In a bullish pattern, oil markets are in backwardation. Short-term prices trade higher than long-dated ones. Brent’s prompt spread — the difference between its two nearest contracts — was more than $2 a barrel on Tuesday, up from less than 50 cents in late-April.

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