March West Texas Intermediate crude oil posted its highest close since Dec. 1 on Thursday on hopes of increased Chinese demand. Surprisingly, traders shrugged off a second straight week of large builds in U.S. crude inventories and fear that the Federal Reserve will push the U.S. economy into recession if it continues to raise interest rates aggressively. New Reports Put Increased Chinese Demand in Spotlight Crude oil futures were drifting lower early Thursday on recession fears but quickly rebounded after the latest export figures published by…
