Investing.com – Crude settled higher on Friday, as investors shrugged off concerns about high levels of U.S. crude inventories while the number of active U.S. drilling rigs rose for a ninth straight week.
Oilfield services firm Barker Hughes reported its weekly U.S. rig count rose by 14 to 631, it was the ninth straight weekly increase.
Crude traded in a narrow $2.5 range this week but ultimately settled positive for the week on Friday as investors mulled over the release of several mostly upbeat energy reports while the slump in the dollar provided support for oil prices.
Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih relieved some concerns from investors on Thursday, as he said that oil production cuts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC producers could be extended beyond June if oil stocks stayed above a long-term average.
The somewhat bullish comments from the Saudi Energy Minister came a day after the Energy Information Agency (EIA) revealed that U.S. crude inventories declined to 528.2 million barrels last week, the first decline in nine weeks.
Elsewhere, an OPEC monthly report earlier this week revealed that total production for OPEC is decreasing, as its members pumped 31.95 million barrels per day in February, compared to 32.097 million barrels a day in January.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude futures for May delivery gained 3 cents to settle at $48.78 a barrel, while on London's Intercontinental Exchange, Brent added 3 cents to settle at $51.77 a barrel.
A plunge in the dollar also supported a recovery in crude prices, after investors lost appetite for the greenback, following the Federal Reserve’s dovish statement on Wednesday, as the US central bank stuck with its previous outlook of three rate hikes this year.
Meanwhile, investors braced for a fresh batch of weekly data from the Energy Information Agency (EIA) due to be released on Wednesday, March 22 at 10:30 EDT.