Oil up, but starts first week of 2023 lower
photo: file
Oil prices gained over 1% on Friday as the dollar slid on a stronger-than-expected US jobs report, but both crude benchmarks were set to end the first week of the year lower due to global recession concerns.
Brent futures rose 80 cents, or 1.0%, to $79.49 a barrel by 1733 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 96 cents, or 1.3%, to $74.63.
For the week, both Brent and WTI were down about 7% as energy markets started 2023 with the biggest weekly dive to start a year since 2016. Both benchmarks had gained about 13% during the prior three weeks.
The US dollar showed employers added jobs at a solid clip in December.
A weaker dollar can boost demand for oil, as dollar-denominated commodities become cheaper for holders of other currencies.
“This was a very good (US jobs) report for oil as the labour market remains robust and wage pressures are coming down, which will allow the (US Federal Reserve) to stop hiking fairly soon,” said Edward Moya, Senior Market Analyst at data and analytics firm OANDA.
Atlanta Federal Reserve (Fed) President Raphael Bostic said the latest US jobs figures are another sign that the economy is gradually slowing and should that continue the Fed can step down to a quarter percentage point interest rate hike at its next policy meeting.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 7th, 2023.
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