New York - World oil prices rose modestly on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve maintained its ultra-loose monetary policy to support the United States economy, the world's biggest crude oil consumer.

New York's main contract, light sweet crude West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in March, settled at $97.94 a barrel, up 37 cents from Tuesday's close.

In London trading, Brent North Sea crude for March rose 54 cents to finish at $114.90 a barrel.

Earlier on Wednesday, WTI reached $98.24 - the highest level since mid-September - and Brent hit $115.24 - its highest price since mid-October.

The New York benchmark briefly fell into negative territory after the publication of the government's weekly report on US petroleum supplies, showing an unexpectedly big jump in crude oil stocks.