New York, (IANS) : Oil prices posted solid gains on Wednesday, with US oil hitting 15-month high, as official data showed a surprisingly large weekly drop in US crude inventories.

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in its weekly report that US crude inventories dropped by 5.2 million barrels to a total of 468.7 million barrels in the week through October 14, Xinhua news agency reported.

Oil prices also got an added boost after an official from Saudi Arabia said oil producers who are not members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries have shown willingness to join the cartel’s effort to limit output, according to media reports.

The West Texas Intermediate for November delivery added $1.31 to settle at $51.60 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for December delivery increased $0.99 to close at $52.67 a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.