Oil prices rose for a second straight day on Friday.
US benchmark oil for October delivery was up $1.53 or 1.5 per cent to $106.55 a barrel in the afternoon trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil rose $1.18 a barrel on Thursday.
Even with the two days of gains, oil is down almost $1 a barrel for the week.
Oil prices rose after the Government said that Americans cut back sharply in July on their purchases of new homes, a sign that higher mortgage rates may weigh on the housing recovery.
Traders apparently saw the weak data as an indication that the Federal Reserve may need to wait before slowing down its bond-buying programme.
Risk premiums linked to the political crisis in Egypt and labour conflicts at key Libyan ports used to ship oil exports have also supported crude prices over the past few days.
Egypt controls the Suez Canal and the Sumed pipeline, crucial transport routes between West Asia and the Mediterranean Sea through which around 4.5 million barrels of oil and refined products are shipped daily.
North Sea Brent, the benchmark for international crude, was up $1.19 to $111.09 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London.
