Oil prices edged lower on Friday with weak demand in the spotlight after the OPEC+ group delayed a planned supply increase and extended deep production cuts until the end of 2026.
Meanwhile, Brent crude fell 6 cents (0.1%) to $72.03 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell 1 cent to $68.29 a barrel.
For the week, Brent is on track to fall more than 1% while WTI held on to a slight gain of 0.1%.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) on Thursday rejected a proposal to increase oil output by three months until April and extended a full easing of cuts by a year until the end of 2026.
The group, responsible for about half of the world’s oil output, plans to start reducing cuts from October 2024 and a slowdown in global demand, especially in China.
However, concerns that supply will still outstrip demand even into next year are weighing on prices further.
Markets are also watching the US NFP report due out late on Friday to see if it will support expectations of a rate cut at the upcoming Fed meeting.
