Oil futures prices fell on Friday on concerns about global economic demand and a sharp fall in global interest rates, but US prices managed a small a gain for the week, the third in a row.
Global crude prices continued to ease from their four-month highs on Friday due to lingering concerns of weakening future energy demand. Another small fall in active US oil rig numbers didn’t help confidence either.
Data Friday showed early survey results for manufacturing in March fell to a 21-month low, with US activity still solid but weaker from February.
The survey data helped trigger a further fall in bond yields – especially in the US where there was an inversion of the yield curve (That’s when longer-term rates – in this case yield on 10-year bonds, fall under shorter-dated yields on shorter-dated securities.
The yield on the key 10-year bond fell to 2.44%, under the federal Funds fate range of 2.25% to 2.50% and for a while under the yields on shorter-dated bonds
In New York West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery fell 94 cents, or 1.6%, to settle at $US59.04 a barrel. The May contract ended higher for the week, up 0.4% from the week-ago finish.
In Europe, May Brent crude fell 83 cents, or 1.2%, to $US67.03 a barrel, for a 0.2% weekly decline.
On rig numbers, Baker Hughes on Friday revealed a fifth weekly fall in active rig use. The number fell by 9 to 824 last week.
Including gas rigs, the total US figure fell by 10 to 1,016 last week against, 1,078 last December. That’s a fall of 5.7%. Oil production was estimated at 12.1 million barrels a day, up around 100,000 over the week.
