Investing.com - Crude oil futures gained ground on Thursday, as upbeat U.S. data fuelled optimism over the strength of the economic recovery and amid mounting tensions between Russia and Ukraine.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, U.S. crude oil for delivery in October traded at $94.45 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, up 0.59%.
Prices inched up 0.02% on Wednesday to settle at $93.88.
Futures were likely to find support at $93.35 a barrel, the low from August 26 and resistance at $95.14, the high from August 18.
Oil prices strengthened after preliminary data showed that U.S. gross domestic product expanded by 4.2% in the second quarter, beating expectations for growth of 3.9%, after an expansion of 4.0% in the three months to April.
In addition, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending August 22 declined by 1,000 to 298,000 from the previous week’s revised total of 299,000.
Analysts had expected the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits to rise by 1,000 to 300,000 last week.
The strong data confirmed Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's comments at Jackson Hole last week saying that the U.S. economy is recovering and the labor market is improving.
Elsewhere, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko called an emergency security meeting to defend against what he called a Russian "invasion" on Thursday.
The decision came after separatists gained ground in intensified fighting in eastern regions.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil for October rose 0.24% to trade at $102.97 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at $8.52 a barrel.