Oil Prices Continue to Rise on Supply Concerns
Investing.com - Oil prices were higher on Friday as supply concerns weighed and investors looked ahead to weekly rig count data.
West Texas crude oil futures for November rose 0.22% to $72.28 a barrel as of 9:54 AM ET (13:54 GMT). Meanwhile, Brent crude futures, the benchmark for oil prices outside the U.S., increased 0.69% to a four-year-high of $81.94.
Late on Wednesday, the U.S. said it would not increase supply to offset the decrease in production.
Energy Secretary Rick Perry told a news conference that the Trump Administration was not considering a release of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve to offset the impact of the sanctions on Iran that is expected to come into force on Nov. 4.
The move comes after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Russia in Algiers on Sunday and made no formal recommendation for any additional supply boost. Saudi Arabia, OPEC’s largest producer, says it can add an extra 1.5 million barrels per day.
Prices of oil have been rising in recent months over concern of tightening supply due to U.S. sanctions against Tehran, which have already caused Iran’s crude exports to fall.
Investors are also looking ahead to the the Baker Hughes U.S. oil rig count at 1:00 PM ET (17:00 GMT).
In other energy trading, gasoline RBOB futures rose 0.56% at $2.0810 a gallon, while heating oil increased 0.24% to $2.3316 a gallon. Natural gas futures lost 2.16% to $2.990 per million British thermal units.
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