U.S. oil prices rise, but Brent falls

New York-traded oil futures ended higher on Thursday, shaking off earlier weakness, while Brent prices hit fresh multi-year lows but held above $50 a barrel.

sweet crude futures for delivery in February CLG5, +0.76% rose 14 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $48.79 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

February Brent crude LCOH5, +0.50%  on London’s ICE Futures exchange declined 19 cents, or 0.4%, to settle at $50.96 a barrel.