By Nicole Jao
NEW YORK (Reuters) -Oil prices fell on Friday, posting a third consecutive weekly loss, as investors weighed reassurances from OPEC+ against the latest U.S. jobs data, which lowered expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates soon.
futures closed 25 cents lower at $79.62 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) () fell 2 cents to $75.53.
Data showed U.S. job growth accelerated much more than expected in May, keeping the Fed on track to delay rate cuts until September at the earliest.
The European Central Bank on Thursday made its first interest rate cut since 2019, despite an increasingly uncertain inflation outlook.
High borrowing costs can slow economic activity and dampen oil demand.
“The jobs report indicated higher rates for longer,” said Andrew Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates. “That tends to dampen enthusiasm in the oil market.”
The dollar rose 0.8% to its highest in more than a week shortly after the release of the jobs report. [USD/]
However, oil prices have been buoyed by support from OPEC+ members Saudi Arabia and Russia, suggesting oil production increases are looking to be paused or reversed.
Still, crude fell for a third week in a row on demand concerns, with Brent down 2.5% and WTI down 1.9%.
Oil fell earlier this week after analysts saw Sunday’s OPEC+ meeting as an indication of rising supply, which is bearish for prices.
The number of active U.S. drilling rigs, an early indicator of future production, fell by four this week to 492, the lowest since January 2022, according to energy services company Baker Hughes.
Meanwhile, in China, data showed that while exports grew for a second month in May, crude oil imports fell, signaling concerns about demand among the world’s biggest crude buyer.
“Exports far exceeded expectations,” said Tamas Varga of oil broker PVM. “But worrying for oil, total imports fell again.”
In Russia, operations at the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in the southern Rostov region have suffered significant disruptions following a fire following a drone attack on Thursday.
Money managers cut their net long futures and options positions in the week to June 4, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said.
