Investing.com - Crude oil futures were lower on Friday, as investors awaited the release of U.S. data later in the day, after Thursday's economic reports boosted expectations that the Federal Reserve will unwind its asset purchase program later this year.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in June traded at USD96.53 a barrel during European morning trade, down 0.18%.
The Department of Labor said on Thursday that the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week fell by 12,000 to 334,000, compared to expectations for a decline of 1,000 to 345,000.
Separately, the Commerce Department said U.S. retail sales rose 0.6% in May, led higher by increased automobile purchases, beating forecasts for a 0.4% increase.
Core retail sales, which exclude auto sales, were up 0.3%, in line with expectations.
The U.S. is the world’s biggest oil-consuming country, responsible for almost 22% of global oil demand.
But prices remained under pressure after the World Bank lowered on Thursday its growth estimate for the global economy in 2013 to 2.2%, down from a previous estimate of 2.4%.
For next year, the World Bank said it expects 3% growth worldwide, compared to its January forecast for growth of 3.1%.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for June delivery declined 0.46% to trade at USD104.47 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD7.94 a barrel.
