Brent crude oil prices inched up as tensions over Iran and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ (OPEC) decision on supply cuts extension offered support, while US benchmark crude prices declined on weak economic indicators.
Front-month Brent crude futures LCOc1 edged up $0.28 at $63.58 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 slipped $0.48 at $56.86 per barrel, Reuters reported.
Representatives of the US and China are set to resume discussions next week to resolve a trade dispute that dampened prospects of global economic growth and oil demand.
Petromatrix oil analyst Olivier Jakob told Reuters: “The truce between the US and China is not translating into anything in the real economy in the short term.”
In May 2019, German industrial orders declined far more than expected, and the Economy Ministry cautioned that this sector is expected to remain weak in the coming months. Government data showed that new orders for factory goods in the US declined for a second straight month during the same period.
Report released by the US Energy Information Administration highlighted a weekly fall of 1.1 million barrels in crude stocks. This was much smaller compared to the five million barrel draw reported by the American Petroleum Institute earlier in the week.
Crude oil prices gained some support following an agreement by the OPEC and other producers such as Russia, a grouping known as OPEC+ with regard to an extension of supply cuts. Ongoing tensions in the Middle East also offered support to oil prices.
