27.03.202520:34:00UTC+00Oil Futures Settle Higher On Supply Concerns

Oil prices moved higher on Thursday on concerns about supplies due to rising trade tensions following the U.S. President Donald Trump's new tariffs on auto imports, and the imposition of tariffs on goods imported by countries that buy oil from Venezuela.

Recent data showing a sharp drop in U.S. crude inventories last week, and a weak dollar too supported oil prices.

West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May settled higher by $0.27 or nearly 0.4% at $69.92 a barrel.

Brent crude futures settled at $74.03 a barrel, gaining $0.24 or about 0.3%.

Data from the Commerce Department said the U.S. economy grew by slightly more than previously estimated in the fourth quarter of 2024, with the gross domestic product surging by 2.4%, compared to the previously reported 2.3$ jump. Economists had expected the pace of GDP growth to be unrevised.

The Labor Department's report said initial jobless claims slipped to 224,000 in the week ended March 22nd, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week's revised level of 225,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 225,000 from the 223,000 originally reported for the previous week.

Pending home sales in the U.S. saw a significant rebound in the month of February, the National Association of Realtors revealed in a report. NAR said its pending home sales index surged by 2% to 72.0 in February after plunging 4.6% to an all-time low of 70.6 in January. Economists had expected pending home sales to jump by 1.5%.