• Oil was poised to eke out a modest weekly gain as futures remained in a narrow range, with the outlook for supply and inflation in focus.
• Brent traded above $83 a barrel after a two-day advance that saw futures add about 1%, while West Texas Intermediate was below $80. Lower US crude stockpiles, as well as a lift from signs that US inflation could be ebbing, have vied in recent sessions with weaker demand growth outlooks from bodies including the International Energy Agency.
• Price action this week has been muted, as the competing drivers largely offset each other. That’s resulted in the tightest weekly range — of less than $3 a barrel for Brent — since March. Technical factors are also at play, with prices holding close to the 100-day moving average.
• Crude remains higher for the year to date, although futures have declined since April as the geopolitical risk premium that had come from tensions in the Middle East faded.