Oil prices stayed mostly the same on Friday, but they were on track for a small rise this week thanks to hopes that China’s economy will get better due to new government help. Brent crude oil dropped by just 1 cent, making it $73.25 a barrel. Meanwhile, U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was at $69.60, down by 2 cents from Thursday.
Despite this slight drop, Brent crude was up by 0.4% for the week, and WTI rose by 0.2%. The World Bank announced that it expects China’s economy to grow more in 2024 and 2025. However, they also noted that people and businesses in China are still feeling uncertain, and problems in the property market might hold back growth next year.
China recently upgraded the size of its economy by 2.7%, but the government said this change would not affect growth very much this year. They promised more help to boost the economy in 2025. Next year, China plans to release 3 trillion yuan (about $411 billion) in special treasury bonds as part of a bigger effort to support their slowing economy.
In the U.S., the latest report showed that crude oil stockpiles fell by 3.2 million barrels last week. Traders are waiting to see if the official report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) will confirm this decrease. The EIA’s data is expected at 1 p.m. EST (6 p.m. GMT) on Friday, later than usual because of the Christmas holiday. According to a poll by Reuters, analysts think crude inventories dropped by about 1.9 million barrels during the week ending on December 20, while gasoline and distillate fuels are likely down by 1.1 million barrels and 0.3 million barrels.
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