Oil Set for Weekly Gain Amid Coronavirus Vaccine Rollouts

Oil prices eased on Friday but were set for a sixth week of gains, as the rollout of novel coronavirus vaccination programs fed hopes that demand for fuel would rebound next year.
Brent was down 19 cents or 0.4% at $50.06 a barrel, after rising above $51 a barrel on Thursday to an early-March high, Reuters reported. US oil was down 11 cents, or 0.2%, at $46.67 a barrel, having risen almost 3% in the previous session.
Promising vaccine trials helped lift some gloom over record increases in the number of new coronavirus infections and deaths around the world.
Britain began inoculations this week and the United States could start vaccinations as early as the coming weekend, while Canada on Wednesday approved its first vaccine with initial shots due from next week.
Outside advisers for the US Food and Drug Administration have voted to endorse emergency use of Pfizer’s vaccine, paving the way for the agency to authorize its use to inoculate a nation that has lost more than 285,000 lives to Covid-19.
A big jump in US crude stockpiles last week served as a reminder that there is still plenty of supply available, but it was all but ignored as bulls ran through the market this week.
Caption: US oil was down 11 cents at $46.67 a barrel on Friday.