Investing.com - U.S. oil futures dropped sharply on Friday, as expectations for a December rate hike in the U.S. continued to send the dollar broadly higher.
U.S. crude futures for January delivery were last at $42.09 a barrel, down 2.17% for the day.
On the ICE Futures Exchange in London, the January Brent contract were down 0.76% at $45.10 a barrel.
The dollar remained broadly supported after a string of upbeat U.S. data released over the week added to expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next month.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.25% at an eight-month high of 100.12.
Dollar-denominated oil futures contracts tend to fall when the dollar rises, as this makes oil more expensive for buyers in other currencies.
Elsewhere, Saudi Arabia said earlier this week that it is prepared to use all measures necessary to ensure a stable oil market. The world's biggest oil producer added that it is ready to cooperate with OPEC and non-OPEC producers in order to stabilize prices.
But on Wednesday, Saudi Aramco, the Kingdom’s largest oil producer, said it will not cut production in 2016, but will meet customer's demands.
OPEC will meet on December 4 to review their output strategy. Global oil production is outpacing demand following a boom in U.S. shale oil production and after a decision by OPEC last year not to cut production in order to defend their market share.