Investing.com – WTI crude oil prices settled higher Friday, as traders cheered signs of tightening U.S. output, though sentiment was soured by a report suggesting major oil producers were ready to discuss plans to ramp up output.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, for October delivery rose 46 cents to settle at $70.78 a barrel, while on London’s Intercontinental Exchange, gained 0.09% to trade at $78.77 a barrel.
Oilfield services firm Baker Hughes reported on Friday that the number of U.S. oil drilling rigs in operation rose by 1 to 866 this week.
The fall in rig counts, pointing to signs of tightening crude output, did little to calm fears that major oil producers would discuss ramping up output in a bid to offset an expected drop in Iranian crude exports as U.S. sanctions loom. OPEC and non-OPEC are set to gather at a meeting in the Algiers over the weekend.
“There are discussions to increase production by another 500,000 (barrels a day) bpd. They (OPEC and non-OPEC) can increase output when they meet in December,” Reuters reported, citing a source.
President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the Iran nuclear agreement in May, allowing sanctions against Iran to snap back into place. The first wave of sanctions went into effect last month and a second set of sanctions on Iran’s crude exports are slated for early November.
Crude oil prices fell sharply on the report, but clawed back losses amid ongoing expectations that oil prices had further room to advance.
JPMorgan raised its fourth-quarter Brent forecast by $22 a barrel to $85 and fourth-quarter WTI forecast by $19.80 a barrel to $75.83.
Crude oil prices settled higher for the second week in row Friday, after wild ride as oil prices came under attack following remarks from President Trump on Thursday.
President Donald Trump demanded OPEC find a way slash oil prices just days after Saudi officials reportedly said they would be comfortable with oil prices above $80 a barrel.
Yet, that did little to knock gains from earlier in the week following a bullish petroleum report.
Inventories of U.S. crude fell by 2.057 million barrels for the week ended Sept. 14, missing expectations for of 2.74 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Wednesday.
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Source: Investing.com
