HOUSTON- Oil prices settled higher on Friday and notched over 3.5 percent in weekly gains as positive economic data and signals from Fed policymakers that they could cut interest rates as early as September eased demand concerns, while fears of a widening Middle East conflict continue to raise supply risks.
Brent crude futures settled 50 cents up, or 0.6 percent, at $79.66 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 65 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $76.84. both benchmarks.
Brent gained more than 3.5 percent in the week, while WTI rose more than 4 percent.
“Crude is in a recovery mode … as geopolitical tensions still seem to be a positive factor, and on-again off-again recession fears have calmed a bit, at least for now,” said Dennis Kissler, senior vice president of trading at BOK Financial.
A trio of Federal Reserve policymakers indicated on Thursday that they were more confident that inflation is cooling enough to cut rates. A bigger-than-expected fall in US jobless claims data also helped to underpin the recovery.
The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, suggesting that fears the labor market is unraveling were overblown and that the gradual softening in the labor market remains intact.
Also offering support was China’s consumer price index, which rose last month at a slightly faster than expected rate, statistics bureau data showed.
