Oil futures end higher for the session, fall for the week

Oil futures climbed on Friday, but ended the week with a loss. Data from the Energy Information Administration show “robust demand, while Russia showed its robust ability to find new buyers” for its oil, said Manish Raj, chief financial officer at Velandera Energy Partners. Next week’s EIA report will be closely watched “to see whether this week’s solid demand was just an anomaly or the new norm.” Meanwhile, the Iran nuclear deal seems to be “stuck in a vacuum, crushing hopes of additional supplies,” said Raj. September WTI crude edged up by 27 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $90.77 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That was the highest front-month contract finish in a week, FactSet data showed. For the week, front-month prices lost 1.4%.

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