US oil futures eased back under $US50 a barrel on Friday night, but still ended up more than 3% for the week – a direct contrast to gold which fell more than 5%.
A combination of Hurricane Matthew and uncertainty surrounding informal output discussions among major oil producers saw November West Texas Intermediate crude drop 1.3% on Friday to settle at $US49771 a barrel in New York. That was after the contract settled at a four-month high of $US50.44 on Thursday.
The 3.2% rise for the week meant a third week of gains in a row.
In London, the December Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange shed 82 cents, or 1.6%, to $US51.69 a barrel.
Brent futures jumped 5.4% for the week. Friday’s news of yet another rise in US oil rig use hit sentiment.
The weekly report from Baker Hughes revealed that the number of active US rigs drilling for oil climbed by 3 to 428 rigs this week. Oil rigs in use have risen by 112 from the lows of late May and early June.
They have now posted increases in each of the last six weeks. The total active US rig count, which includes oil and natural-gas rigs, climbed by 2 to 524.
