Oil headed for a second weekly gain after OPEC+ leaders Saudi Arabia and Russia tightened supplies and US crude stockpiles fell.
West Texas Intermediate was steady below $72 a barrel, on course for a weekly advance of nearly 2%. The US crude benchmark is set for the first back-to-back weekly increase since late-May, with near-term time spreads flipping into a narrow backwardated structure, a bullish pricing pattern.
Saudi Arabia set large price increases for its crude to Europe and the Mediterranean after announcing an extension into August of its unilateral 1-million-barrel-a-day supply cut. In addition, Russia said it would reduce exports by half a million barrels, although output won’t be lowered.
In the US, official data showed nationwide crude stockpiles dropped for a third week, sliding by 1.5 million barrels. Oil holdings at the key Cushing, Oklahoma, storage hub also eased, while inventories of gasoline and distillates dropped.
Crude remains 10% lower this year, with tighter monetary policy, China’s lackluster recovery, and resilient Russian exports pressuring futures. Its rise this week came despite a broad move lower in other risk assets as robust US jobs data reinforced bets the Federal Reserve will keep hiking interest rates.
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