Oil Mixed Amid US Inventories Draw, OPEC+ Impasse

Oil prices were mixed on Friday and still on track for a weekly loss, amid optimism stemming from a draw in US inventories and uncertainty about global supplies fuelled by an OPEC+ impasse.
Brent crude oil futures were down 3 cents at $74.09 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate futures were up 6 cents, or 0.1%, at $73 a barrel, Reuters reported.
Prices on both sides of the Atlantic were headed for a weekly loss of nearly 3%, dragged by the collapse of output talks between the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, including Russia, or OPEC+.
"The markets have no clear direction due to uncertainty over the OPEC+ production after August," said Chiyoki Chen, chief analyst at Sunward Trading.
"A draw in the US crude inventories was a positive factor, but it could be a temporary phenomenon, given a resurgence in the Covid-19 pandemic in the US and elsewhere," he said.
Fresh Covid-19 lockdowns could slow a recovery in air travel and demand for jet fuels, he added.
Japan has banned all spectators from Olympics, scheduled to start on July 23, as a resurgent coronavirus forced it to declare a state of emergency in the host city Tokyo.
In the United States, crude and gasoline stocks fell and gasoline demand reached its highest since 2019, the US Energy Information Administration said on Thursday, signaling increasing strength in the economy.
Crude inventories fell by 6.9 million barrels in the week to July 2 to 445.5 million barrels, the lowest since February 2020, and more than the expected 4 million-barrel drop estimated in a Reuters poll.
Gasoline stocks fell by 6.1 million barrels, exceeding expectations for a 2.2 million-barrel drop.