According to Reuters, crude oil prices settled more than 2%
lower on Friday as supply concerns driven by Middle East tensions eased, while
jobs data raised expectations the US Federal Reserve could be done hiking
interest rates in the biggest oil consuming economy.
Brent crude
futures were down 2.3%, to US$84.89 a barrel. WTI futures also declined 2.4%,
to US$80.51 a barrel. Both the benchmarks settled down more than 6% on the
week.
Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, speaking for the
first time since the Israel-Hamas war erupted, warned on Friday that a
wider conflict in the Middle East was possible but did not commit to opening
another front on Israel's border with Lebanon.
"The
market is taking this conflict in its stride, as it looks to be neither a
significant demand or supply disruption event," said John Kilduff, partner
at Again Capital LLC in New York.
US job growth slowed more than expected in October, while
wage inflation cooled, pointing to an easing in labor market conditions.
The
data bolstered the view that the Federal Reserve need not raise interest rates
further.
The Fed held interest rates steady this week,
while the Bank of England kept rates at a 15-year peak, supporting oil
prices as some risk appetite returned to markets.
A private sector survey on Friday showed that while China's
services activity expanded at a slightly faster pace in October, sales grew at
the softest rate in 10 months and employment stagnated as business
confidence waned.
The data followed a reading from the National Bureau of
Statistics on Wednesday that showed China's manufacturing activity unexpectedly
contracted in October.
On the supply side, Saudi Arabia is expected to
reconfirm an extension of its voluntary oil output cut of one million barrels
per day through December 2023, based on analyst expectations.
The US
House of Representatives easily passed a bill to bolster sanctions on
Iranian oil in a strong bipartisan vote, but it was unclear how effective the
legislation would be if signed into law.
While Congress can pass sanctions legislation, such measures
often come with national security waivers that allow presidents discretion in
applying the law.
China
could also continue to import the oil despite new sanctions.
US energy firms this week cut the number of oil and natural
gas rigs operating to their lowest since February 2022, energy services firm
Baker Hughes said on Friday.
