Investing.com — Oil prices edged higher on Thursday, helped by an unexpected drop in U.S. inventories, but remained on track for steep weekly losses as weak U.S. labor data added to ongoing concerns about global demand.
At 2:30 PM ET (18:30 GMT), the stock rose 1.5% to $77.22 per barrel, while it rose 1.5% to $73.01 per barrel.
So far this week, oil prices are down more than 4%, while WTI oil is down 6%.
US inventories shrink more than expected
Official data released on Wednesday showed oil shrank by 4.6 million barrels in the week to August 16, far more than the 2 million barrels expected.
Moreover, excessive supplies of both oil and inventories indicated that fuel demand in the world’s largest economy remained robust even as the high-travel summer season drew to a close.
Weak economic data limits profits
The U.S. Labor Department last week reported a rise in unemployment claims and a larger-than-expected decline in industrial activity.
While concerns about the economy’s weakness have been tempered by expectations for rate cuts by the Federal Reserve next month, worries about growth do not bode well for demand from the world’s largest fuel consumer.
Traders remain uncertain about the outlook for demand later this year, especially after weak economic data from China fueled concerns about slowing demand in the face of a slowdown from the world’s biggest oil importer.
(Ambar Warrick contributed to this article.)
