“West Texas Intermediate headed for its first weekly gain in a month before data forecast to show more jobs were added in the U.S., the biggest crude consumer.
Futures rose as much as 0.4 percent, and have advanced 3.4 percent this week. Employers in the U.S. probably created as many jobs in May as in the month before, a Bloomberg survey showed before the Labor Department’s report today. WTI’s discount to the European benchmark, Brent, widened for the first time in three days. WTI may slide next week, according to a separate Bloomberg survey.
“We are expecting a seasonal pick-up in demand in the coming months,” said Amrita Sen, chief oil-market analyst at Energy Aspects Ltd., a consulting company in London. “The U.S. recovery has been broadly on track so far. The labor market is healing and the economy is slowly getting better.”
WTI for July delivery was at $95.06 a barrel, up 30 cents, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange as of 10:36 a.m. London time. The volume of all futures traded was 15 percent below the 100-day average. The contract rose $1.02 to $94.76 yesterday, the highest close since May 28.
Brent for July settlement was up 39 cents at $104 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. The European benchmark grade was at a premium of $8.97 to WTI, compared with $8.85 yesterday.
