Crude Oil Ends Lower, But Gains 0.5% For Week

(RTTNews) - U.S. crude oil pared much of the losses but still ended lower for a third straight session Friday, on supply glut worries with U.S. crude stockpiles still at 80-year highs, even as the dollar trended lower. Some soft economic data from the U.S. also weighed on oil prices.

However, crude oil futures gained 0.5 percent for the week. This is the ninth straight week of gain for crude prices.

Talk of a continued price war between OPEC and non-OPEC nations have put a lid on oil's strong move away from this winter's 6-year low near $44.

Tensions in the Middle East failed to give oil much of a lift this morning. Iranian gunboats shot at a Singapore-flagged tanker on Thursday as it was passing through the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. officials told NBC News.

On Friday, data from Baker Hughes showed the number of U.S. rigs actively drilling for oil dropped by 8 this week, the smallest drop since December.

In some soft economic news, industrial production in the U.S. declined in April, reflecting a drop in mining and utilities output, a Federal Reserve report showed Friday. A University of Michigan report on Friday showed a substantial drop in U.S. consumer sentiment in May, reflecting decreases in the assessment of current conditions and the economic outlook.

Meanwhile, business conditions for New York manufacturers improved slightly in May, a Federal Reserve Bank of New York report said Friday.

Light Sweet Crude Oil futures for June delivery, the most actively traded contract, dropped $0.19 or 0.3 percent, to settle at $59.69 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Friday.

Crude prices for June delivery scaled a high of $59.89 a barrel intraday and a low of $58.42.

On Thursday, crude oil dropped $0.62 or 1.0 percent, to settle at $59.88 a barrel on supply glut fears despite official data from the Energy Information Administration indicated a decline in U.S. crude stockpiles end last week.

The dollar index, which tracks the U.S. unit against six major currencies, traded at 93.58 on Thursday, down from its previous close of 93.62 on Wednesday in late North American trade. The dollar scaled a high of 93.76 intraday and a low of 93.13.

The euro trended higher against the dollar at $1.1443 on Friday, as compared to its previous close of $1.1410 in North American trade late Thursday. The euro scaled a high of $1.1460 intraday and a low of $1.1325.

On the economic front, industrial production in the U.S. fell 0.3 percent in April, matching the upwardly revised decrease in March. Economists expected production to remain unchanged compared to the 0.6 percent drop originally reported for the previous month.

Reflecting decreases in the assessment of current conditions and the economic outlook, a University of Michigan report on Friday showed U.S. consumer sentiment index in May to have tumbled to 88.6 from 95.9 in April, while economists had expected the index to edge down to 95.8.

Business conditions for New York manufacturers improved slightly in May, with the New York Fed's general business conditions index climbing to a positive 3.1 from a negative 1.2 in April. A positive reading indicate growth in regional manufacturing activity. However, economists expected the index to show a somewhat more significant improvement to a reading of positive 5.0.

Elsewhere, U.K. construction output recovered strongly in March, data from the Office for National Statistics showed Friday. Construction output grew 3.9 percent in March from February when it fell 0.3 percent. Economists had forecast a 4 percent growth for March.

Germany's manufacturing employment increased in March, data from Destatis showed Friday. The number of people worked in manufacturing units advanced 1.2 percent or 63,000 from the prior year.