Investing.com -
Investing.com - West Texas Intermediate oil futures advanced on Friday, after U.S. nonfarm payrolls data for May indicated that the labor market is continuing to gradually improve.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, U.S. crude oil for delivery in July rose to a daily high of $103.07 a barrel, before subsequently settling at $102.66 by close of trade, up 0.18%, or 18 cents. For the week, Nymex oil lost 0.04%, or 5 cents a barrel.
Oil futures were likely to find support at $101.60 a barrel, the low from June 5 and resistance at $103.69 a barrel, the high from June 4.
The Department of Labor said Friday that the U.S. economy added 217,000 jobs last month, just under expectations for jobs growth of 218,000, while April's figure was revised to 282,000.
The U.S. unemployment rate remained unchanged at a five-and-a-half year low of 6.3%, compared to expectations for an uptick to 6.4%.
The data disappointed some market expectations for a more robust reading but indicated that the U.S. economy is shaking off the effects of a weather-related slowdown over the winter, bolstering the outlook for the broader economic recovery.
Meanwhile, prices received additional support amid hopes fresh stimulus measures introduced in the euro zone will help boost growth prospects in the region.
The ECB cut the main refinancing rate in the euro area to a record low 0.15% on Thursday and imposed negative deposit rates on commercial lenders, in a bid to stimulate lending to businesses.
The central bank also implemented a new Long-Term Refinancing Operation, designed to help banks lend to small companies and said it would "intensify" its preparatory work on the 'asset-backed security' market.
In the week ahead, investors will be looking ahead to Thursday's U.S. retail sales report for further indications on the strength of the economic recovery.
Data from the Commodities Futures Trading Commission released Friday showed that hedge funds and money managers decreased their bullish bets in New York-traded oil futures in the week ending June 3.
Net longs totaled 343,005 contracts as of last week, down 1.45% from net longs of 348,069 in the preceding week.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for July delivery shed 0.17%, or 18 cents, on Friday to settle at $108.61 a barrel by close of trade. The July Brent contract lost 0.73% or 80 cents a barrel, on the week.
Meanwhile the spread between the Brent and the WTI crude contracts stood at $5.95 a barrel by close of trade on Friday, compared to $6.70 in the preceding week.
The spread closed at $5.76 on June 4, the narrowest since April 15, as receding stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for Nymex oil futures, eased concerns over a supply glut.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.