Oil prices fell slightly in early Asian trade on Friday as optimism that a U.S. debt default will be avoided weighed against sticky inflation data that could portend more interest rate hikes from global central banks.
Brent futures were down 2 cents at $75.84 a barrel as at 0015 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 10 cents, or 0.043%, to settle at $71.76. Earlier this week, U.S. President Joe Biden and Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy reiterated their aim to strike a deal soon to raise the $31.4 trillion federal debt ceiling, and agreed to talk as soon as Sunday.
