By Myra P. Saefong, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Oil futures edged higher Friday to reclaim $93 a barrel, finding support from growth in the U.S. manufacturing sector and hopes that the Cyprus government will be able to pull together a plan to secure a bailout.
Crude oil for May delivery CLK3 +0.82% rose 61 cents, or 0.7%, to trade at $93.06 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It lost 1.1% on Thursday and was poised for a loss of about 0.8% for the week.
In London, Brent crude for May delivery UK:LCOK3 +0.30% added 4 cents to $107.51 a barrel on ICE Futures.
“The island of prosperity that is the U.S. continues to excel,” said analysts at the Kilduff Report. Weekly jobless claims fell, “which augers for a positive monthly report in a couple of weeks [and] the Philadelphia Fed Index also beat expectations ... so, it is not hard to get past the minor turbulence of tiny Cyprus.”
Data Thursday showed that weekly jobless claims remained near a five-year low. For March, the U.S. flash manufacturing purchasing managers' index climbed while business among manufacturers in the Philadelphia region improved sharply.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Congress has “quietly taken the threat of a government shutdown off the table,” the analysts at the Kilduff Report said. “The markets are responding to the signs of recovery and the commitment by the [Federal Reserve] to continue easing measures.”
“We are seeing increasing number of commentators grudgingly give the Fed its due, as the recovery deepens and inflation remains scarce,” they said.
In Cyprus Friday, a government spokesman said the next few hours would decide the country’s fate and encouraged lawmakers to make “big decisions” on bailout-related legislation.
The European Central Bank has threatened to cut off emergency liquidity for Cyprus banks on Monday unless a deal is in place to shore up the country’s ailing financial sector.
Oil markets have been watching the developments in the euro-zone nation because of the potential impact on the economies — and energy demand — within the region.
“We should all be used to the drama by now, and if history is a guide, a deal will be worked out at the last minute,” the Kilduff Report analysts said.
In other energy trading Friday, gasoline for April delivery RBJ3 +0.34% was up less than half a cent at $3.07 a gallon, ready for a loss of around 0.9% for the week. April heating oil HOJ3 -0.07% was nearly flat at $2.90 a gallon, trading 1.5% lower for the week.
April natural gas NGJ13 +1.27% traded at $3.98 per million British thermal units, up 4 cents, or 1%. Prices were poised for a gain of about 2.7% from a week ago.
The Energy Information Administration reported on Thursday a decline in last week’s U.S. inventories that was smaller than expected.
Myra Saefong is a MarketWatch reporter based in San Francisco. Follow her on Twitter @MktwSaefong.
