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* AstraZeneca says COVID-19 vaccine can be 90% effective
* Trump, officials give nod to formal Biden transition
* OPEC experts meet ahead of next week's crucial gathering
* Coming up: API inventory report, 2130 GMT
(Updates prices, adds quote)
By Alex Lawler
LONDON, Nov 24 (Reuters) - Oil hit its highest since in
March on Tuesday, rising towards $47 a barrel, as a third
promising coronavirus vaccine spurred demand recovery hopes and
U.S. President-elect Joe Biden received the go-ahead to begin
his transition.
AstraZeneca said on Monday its COVID-19 shot was 70%
effective in trials and could be up to 90% effective, giving the
fight against the pandemic a third vaccine. This follows
positive results from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna.
Brent crude rose 45 cents, or 1%, to $46.51 a barrel
by 1110 GMT and hit a session high of $46.72, its highest since
March 6. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 47
cents, or 1.1%, to $43.53.
"The fight against the coronavirus is intensifying and is
proving to be increasingly successful," said Tamas Varga of
broker PVM. "Next year's oil demand estimates are bound to be
amended upwards."
This is Brent's highest since the collapse of an earlier
OPEC-led output pact, just as demand was starting to crater in
March due to the developing pandemic, sent prices crashing.
Also supporting oil and wider financial markets, U.S.
President Donald Trump on Monday allowed officials to proceed
with a transition to Joe Biden's administration.
"In the short-term, this is good for markets in general as
well as for the oil market," said Bjarne Schieldrop of SEB.
Expectations that U.S. crude inventories edged lower last
week also added support. The first of this week's U.S. supply
reports is due at 2130 GMT from the American Petroleum
Institute.
After the previous output pact collapsed leading to a brief
Saudi Arabia-Russia price war, OPEC and allies agreed to record
high output cuts to support prices.
OPEC+, as the group is known, is expected to roll over
current cuts into 2021 at meetings on Nov. 30-Dec. 1, following
technical talks this week.
(Additional reporting by Jessica Jaganathan; editing by Jason
Neely and Louise Heavens)
