Oil prices were on the rise on Friday, heading for a fourth straight week of gains, amid more evidence that fuel demand is recovering as countries ease business and social restrictions that were imposed to counter the coronavirus pandemic.
Brent crude was up 14 cents, or 0.4%, at $36.20 a barrel by 0040 GMT, after gaining nearly 1% on Thursday. The contract is heading for a jump of more than 10% for the week.
West Texas Intermediate crude was up 5 cents, or 0.2%, at $33.97 a barrel, having gained more than 1% in the last session. The U.S. benchmark is on track for a weekly jump of around 15%.
The lifting of some coronavirus curbs is driving a recovery in gasoline demand with traffic congestion in some of the world’s capitals returning to year-earlier levels, data prepared for Reuters shows.
