Oil set for weekly rise on trade deal hopes, new Iran sanctions
Oil prices settled more than 3% higher on Thursday, supported by hopes for a trade deal between the United States and the European Union and new U.S. sanctions to curb Iranian oil exports, which continued to elevate supply concerns.
Brent crude futures settled $2.11, or 3.2%, higher to $67.96 a barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained $2.21, or 3.54%, at $64.68 a barrel.
For the week, both Brent and WTI gained about 5%, their first weekly gain in three weeks. Thursday is the last settlement day of the week ahead of the Easter holidays and trade volumes are expected to be thin.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said on Wednesday it had received updated plans for Iraq, Kazakhstan and other countries to make further output cuts to compensate for pumping above quotas.
Source: Reuters