Oil prices posted a weekly high, although trading ended slightly lower on Friday following a volatile session that saw prices fall more than a dollar a barrel as traders tried to absorb mixed signals about the level of demand for oil next year.

Price movements

Over the past week, oil prices rose, with Brent crude up 0.94 percent to $76.55 a barrel, and US West Texas Intermediate crude up 0.28 percent to $71.43 a barrel.

Brent crude fell 6 cents, or 0.08 percent, while West Texas Intermediate crude was down 15 cents, or 0.21 percent, in Friday’s trading settlement.

The market faltered at the start of the session after a survey of manufacturing activity released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed a decline in new orders for a third straight month, possibly a sign of weaker demand for oil next year.

Traders were also hurt by comments from New York Federal Reserve Bank President John Williams on Friday about his hope of cutting interest rates next year.

US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said on Thursday that the cycle of raising interest rates aimed at controlling inflation is over, but he left the door open to the possibility of raising them again.

The dollar fell to a four-month low on Thursday after Powell’s comments that he would cut borrowing costs in 2024. The dollar index was mostly flat today on Friday.

A decline in the dollar means lower oil prices for overseas buyers.

Global oil consumption is expected to rise by 1.1 million barrels per day in 2024, the International Energy Agency said in a monthly report, up 130,000 barrels per day from its previous forecast, and attributed to lower U.S. demand expectations and lower oil. Prices.

These estimates for 2024 are less than half of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ (OPEC) forecast for a demand increase of 2.25 million barrels per day.