Oil prices were little changed on Friday, poised for a weekly gain on optimism that economic stimulus efforts would spark a recovery in China, but a stronger dollar capped gains.
Brent crude futures were down 2 cents to $73.24 a barrel by 0535 GMT. WTI crude was down 1 cent to $69.61 by Thursday’s close. But weekly Brent was up 0.4% and WTI was up 0.2%.
The World Bank on Thursday raised its forecast for China’s economic growth in 2024 and 2025, but warned that weak household and business confidence, as well as housing concerns, would continue to weigh on China next year.
China, the world’s largest oil importer, revised its 2023 gross domestic product forecast upwards by 2.7%, but the change is likely to have little impact on growth this year.
Chinese authorities said Beijing had agreed to issue 3 trillion yuan ($411 billion) worth of special treasury bonds next year as it ramps up fiscal stimulus to boost the faltering economy.
Stronger U.S. dollar, however, weighed on oil prices and capped gains. The greenback rose nearly 7% this quarter and remained at a nearly two-year high against its major peers after the Federal Reserve signaled slower interest rate cuts in 2025.
A stronger dollar is making oil more expensive for holders of other currencies.
The latest weekly report on U.S. inventories by industry group the American Petroleum Institute (API) showed that crude stocks fell by 3.2 million barrels last week.
Traders will wait until 1800 GMT on Friday to see if the official inventory report from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) confirms the decline.
Analysts expect crude oil inventories to fall by about 1.9 million barrels in the week to December 20, while gasoline and distillate inventories are expected to fall by 1.1 million barrels and 0.3 million barrels respectively.
