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Oil rises on positive sign for US jobs
Source: Agencies |
March 8, 2013, Friday
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OIL rose the most in two weeks yesterday on a positive signal from the US jobs market. Natural gas rose 3 percent as supplies dropped more than expected.
Benchmark oil for April delivery gained US$1.13 to finish at US$91.56 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas futures jumped 11 cents to US$3.58 per 1,000 cubic feet.
The four-week average for applications for unemployment benefits dropped last week to its lowest level in five years, the Labor Department said yesterday. A government report Friday is expected to show that employers in the US, the biggest consumer of oil and petroleum products, added 152,000 jobs last month.
Some support for crude came from a weaker dollar, which makes oil cheaper and a more enticing investment for traders using other currencies. On yesterday, the euro was up to US$1.3110 from US$1.2974 late Wednesday in New York.
Oil is still down about 6 percent over the past three weeks.
Meanwhile the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reported that natural gas in storage shrank by 146 billion cubic feet to 2.083 trillion cubic feet in the week ended March 1. Analysts expected a draw of 130 billion to 134 billion cubic feet. Natural gas supplies are now 15 percent below year-ago levels, a sign that the US is whittling away at a surplus that pushed natural gas prices down to decade lows a year earlier.
Brent crude, used to price many kinds of oil imported by US refineries, rose 9 cents at US$111.15 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London.
In other energy futures trading on the Nymex:
- Wholesale gasoline was flat at US$3.12 a gallon.
- Heating oil rose less than a penny to US$2.98 a gallon.
Benchmark oil for April delivery gained US$1.13 to finish at US$91.56 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas futures jumped 11 cents to US$3.58 per 1,000 cubic feet.
The four-week average for applications for unemployment benefits dropped last week to its lowest level in five years, the Labor Department said yesterday. A government report Friday is expected to show that employers in the US, the biggest consumer of oil and petroleum products, added 152,000 jobs last month.
Some support for crude came from a weaker dollar, which makes oil cheaper and a more enticing investment for traders using other currencies. On yesterday, the euro was up to US$1.3110 from US$1.2974 late Wednesday in New York.
Oil is still down about 6 percent over the past three weeks.
Meanwhile the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reported that natural gas in storage shrank by 146 billion cubic feet to 2.083 trillion cubic feet in the week ended March 1. Analysts expected a draw of 130 billion to 134 billion cubic feet. Natural gas supplies are now 15 percent below year-ago levels, a sign that the US is whittling away at a surplus that pushed natural gas prices down to decade lows a year earlier.
Brent crude, used to price many kinds of oil imported by US refineries, rose 9 cents at US$111.15 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London.
In other energy futures trading on the Nymex:
- Wholesale gasoline was flat at US$3.12 a gallon.
- Heating oil rose less than a penny to US$2.98 a gallon.
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