Oil prices rise but still on track for weekly decline

Oil (BZ=F, CL=F)

Oil prices climbed on Friday morning but are still on course for a weekly fall, amid lingering concerns about oversupply in the market.

Brent crude (BZ=F) futures rose 0.9% to $63.94 per barrel at the time of writing, while West Texas Intermediate futures (CL=F) gained nearly 1% at $60.01 a barrel.

Prices fell earlier in the week following a decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) to pause output increases in the first quarter, which fuelled oversupply worries.

OPEC+ agreed on Sunday to a modest output increase of 137,000 barrels per day (bpd) in December but said that they then planned to pause increases in January, February and March.

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Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said Brent crude was "on track for a second weekly decline in the face of supply concerns with output on the increase across a wide spread of nations, with lower-than-average demand growth expected to persist into 2026."

In addition, there are also concerns about economic uncertainty in the US and the impact that this could have on demand for fuel.

Data released by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas on Thursday showed that job cuts in the US in October were up 175% year-on-year to 153,074, which was the highest figure for the month since 2003.

US government economic data releases have stalled due to the shutdown, meaning there has been much more focus on figures from the private sector.

NY Mercantile - Delayed Quote•USD

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0.2500

0.0000

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As of 4:18:39 AM EST. Market Open. Advanced Chart

Gold (GC=F)

Gold prices also rose on Friday amid concerns about the economy, as investors continued to turn to the precious metal as a safe-haven asset.

Gold futures (GC=F) advanced 0.6% to $4,016.70 per ounce at the time of writing, while spot gold gained 0.9% to $4,012.30 an ounce.

The precious metal recovered following falls earlier in the week, as markets tempered expectations of an interest rate cut by the US Federal Reserve in December.

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Higher interest rates tend to dent the appeal of gold, given the precious metal is a non-yielding asset.

Ewa Manthey, commodities strategist at ING (ING), said in a note on Wednesday: "Despite the recent pullback in prices, we remain positive on our gold outlook, with macro tailwinds and fundamentals pointing to further upside in 2026."

"Even after the recent weakness, gold prices are still up by more than 50% year-to-date," she said. "Key supports, including central bank and haven demand, remain in place."

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COMEX - Delayed Quote•USD

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Pound (GBPUSD=X, GBPEUR=X)

The pound dipped 0.2% against the dollar (GBPUSD=X) on Friday morning, to trade at $1.3102, as investors digested the Bank of England's (BoE) latest interest rate decision.

The central bank opted to keep rates on hold at 4% on Thursday, though policymakers were split 5-4 on the decision, showing it was a close call.

CCY - Delayed Quote•USD

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-0.0032

(-0.25%)

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Chris Turner, ING's (ING) global head of markets and regional head of research for the UK & CEE, said that "it now seems [Bank of England] governor Andrew Bailey is the swing voter and minded for a December cut".

"That outcome is only priced with a 70% probability right now, meaning that there is scope for lower short-term rates and a weaker pound," he said.

Meanwhile, the pound was little changed against the euro (GBPEUR=X) on Friday, trading at €1.1358 at the time of writing.

More broadly, the FTSE 100 (^FTSE) fell 0.4% in early European trading to 9,701 points. For more details on market movements check our live coverage here.

CCY - Delayed Quote•USD

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1.1344

-0.0025

(-0.22%)

As of 9:51:55 AM GMT. Market Open. Advanced Chart

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