Oil futures settled higher on Friday, shaking off earlier declines as tight U.S. crude supplies helped lift prices up for a fourth month in a row.
Prices also ended higher for the week on the back of the “favorable supply and demand dynamics,” said Lukman Otunuga, manager, market analysis at FXTM. “As concerns over the delta variant’s impact on global fuel demand ease, this could support oil bulls moving forward.”
Last week’s decline in U.S. crude inventories, meanwhile, is also supportive for oil prices as it encourages the demand outlook, he said.
U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery CL00, -1.04% CLU21, -1.04% rose 33 cents, or nearly 0.5%, to settle at $73.95 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest front-month finish since July 13, according to Dow Jones Market Data. Front-month prices logged a 2.6% weekly rise and a nearly 0.7% monthly climb.
Global benchmark Brent crude saw its front-month September contract BRNU21, which expired at the end of the session, move up by 28 cents, or 0.4%, to end at $76.33 a barrel, around 3% higher for the week and up 1.6% for the month.
The most-actively traded October Brent crude contract BRN00, -1.22% BRNV21, -1.22% rose 31 cents, or 0.4, Friday to settle at $75.41 a barrel.
Crude got a boost earlier this week as U.S. government data showed a weekly drawdown in domestic crude, gasoline and distillate inventories.
Reference: Market Watch
Thai
Eng