|
Brent crude futures rose 23 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $93.93
a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures was up 61
cents, or 0.7%, to close at $90.77 a barrel. Both contracts
traded at 10-month highs on Tuesday for the fifth consecutive
session, and gained about 4% on a weekly basis.
Oil prices are also on track for their biggest quarterly
increase since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in the first quarter
of 2022.
Supply concerns continue to be a driving force for prices since
Saudi Arabia and Russia this month announced an extension of
their combined supply cuts of 1.3 million barrels per day to the
end of this year, said Fiona Cincotta, an analyst at City Index.
Better-than-expected industrial output and retail sales data in
China have also boosted oil prices this week, with the country's
economic conditions considered crucial to oil demand for the
rest of this year, Cincotta added.
Data on Friday showed Chinese oil refinery processing rose by
nearly 20% from a year earlier as processors kept run rates high
to capitalise on high global demand for oil products.
Expectations of moderating U.S. oil output have also boosted
prices in recent weeks, Third Bridge analyst Peter McNally said.
"Supply growth from the U.S. appears to be limited as producers
there have taken drilling activity down nearly 20% from last
year's peak," McNally noted.
The U.S. oil rig count rose by two this week to 515, the most
since April, data from oilfield services firm Baker Hughes
showed on Friday. Compared to a year ago, however, the oil rig
count is down by 84 units, the data showed.
(Reporting by Shariq Khan; Additional reporting by Natalie
Grover and Sudarshan Varadhan; Editing by David Goodman, Nick
Zieminski, Chris Reese and Paul Simao)
[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
