(Bloomberg) — Oil completed its first weekly gain since early July with traders monitoring developments in the Middle East and the fledgling recovery from this week’s rout in wider markets.
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West Texas Intermediate edged higher to settle above $76 a barrel as signs of resilience in the US labor market bolstered stocks. The US, Qatar and Egypt are calling for a new round of cease fire talks to end the war in Gaza, while the region braces for an expected Iranian attack on Israel.
Futures were supported by the halting of Libya’s biggest field, a sixth straight week of US stockpile drawdowns and Ukraine’s incursions into Russia. Earlier this week, oil plunged to a seven-month low amid the rout in global equity markets. The recent slide pushed money managers to slash their net-bullish position on Brent futures to the lowest on record.
Analysts at wholesale fuel distributor TACenergy wrote in a note to clients that better-than-expected economic data, alongside “amorphous and pervasive ‘Middle East Tensions’” were pushing crude futures higher.
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