Brent crude settles above $76, rises for second week

Oil drilling rigs

Oil prices extended their gains on Friday, Jan. 3, rising the second consecutive driven by expectations of higher demand due to the cold weather sweeping Europe and the United States, as well as China’s effort to stimulate its economy.

At settlement, Brent crude futures for March delivery rose by 0.75% or 58 cents to $76.51 per barrel, achieving a weekly gain of 3.7%.

Meanwhile, US WTI crude futures for February delivery increased by 1.15% or 83 cents to $73.96 per barrel, up 4.75% since the beginning of the week.

Giovanni Staunovo, an analyst at UBS, said oil demand is likely to benefit from colder temperatures across Europe and the United States, according to Reuters.

This comes after China declared new measures to boost growth earlier this week, including a surprise move to raise government employee wages, a sharp increase in funding to stimulate business investment, and initiatives to enhance consumer spending.