International crude oil prices logged their first weekly gain after almost one month in the previous session after Hurricane Francine caused production halts in the US Gulf of Mexico. Crude oil snapped the bearish sell-off tone buoyed by weather-related hurricane warnings after benchmark Brent crude futures crashed to a 33-month low over demand and oversupply concerns earlier this week.
Brent settled lower on Friday, September 13, after US Gulf of Mexico crude production resumed following Hurricane Francine and a weekly rise in US rig count. Brent crude futures settled at $71.61 a barrel, down 36 cents or 0.5 per cent. US West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) settled at $68.65 a barrel, down 32 cents, or 0.5 per cent. Back home, crude oil futures settled 0.46 per cent lower at ₹5,782 per barrel on the multi-commodity exchange (MCX).
Crude oil recovers from 33-month low: What’s lifting the sentiment?
-As US Gulf Coast production and refining activity resumes, investors have opted to offload oil contracts until the weekend. For the week, oil futures finished higher following sharp storm-related increases early in the week, breaking a streak of declines. Brent logged an increase of about 0.8 per cent since the close of last Friday’s session, while WTI registered a roughly 1.4 per cent gain.
