Investing.com - Crude oil futures were lower on Friday, after disappointing U.S. jobless claims data on Thursday and ahead of a U.S. new home sales report later in the day, amid ongoing uncertainty over the future of the Federal Reserve's stimulus program.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in October traded at USD104.79 a barrel during European morning trade, down 0.23%.
The October contract settled up 1.14%, at USD105.03 a barrel on Thursday.
Oil prices came under pressure after the Department of Labor on Thursday said the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week rose by 13,000 to a seasonally adjusted 336,000, slightly higher than forecasts for 330,000.
The data came a day after the minutes of the Fed’s July meeting showed that officials were "broadly comfortable" with plans to start unwinding the bank’s USD85 billion-a-month bond buying program.
However, officials remain divided over the timing of possible reduction, with almost all committee members agreeing that a change in the asset purchase program was not yet appropriate.
The minutes described recent U.S. economic data as “mixed”, indicating that plans to taper could be pushed back if the economy was to weaken.
The Fed’s stimulus program is viewed by many investors as a key driver in boosting the price of commodities as it tends to depress the value of the dollar.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for October delivery eased 0.04% to trade at USD109.86 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD4.83 a barrel.
