Brent Oil Near $70 Per Barrel on Strong U.S Economy

Brent crude oil, against which Nigerian oil is priced, gained 19 cents or 0.36 percent to $69.82 a barrel on Friday at 2:28 pm Nigerian time.

The crude oil rose on strong U.S economic data and expectations that demand would rebound in the near term and boosted fuel consumption in the third quarter.

Edward Moya, OANDA analyst, in a note said, “Oil headed higher on robust U.S. economic data and growing sentiment that if the Iran nuclear deal is revived, it will not include an immediate removal of sanctions and that the oil market will not get quickly flooded with excess supplies.”

Brent and WTI are both on track to post weekly gains of 5% to 6% as analysts expect global oil demand to rebound closer to 100 million barrels per day in the third quarter on summer travel in Europe and the United States following widespread COVID-19 vaccination programs.

Robust economic data from the United States, the world’s largest economy and oil consumer, also buoyed risk appetite. The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell to the lowest since mid-March 2020, beating estimates.