Oil Lower on Firm Dollar

Oil prices inched lower in volatile trade on Monday, as a stronger dollar and fears of recession risks offset gains arising from Russia's plans to deepen oil supply cuts.
West Texas Intermediate US crude futures traded at $76.09 a barrel, 23 cents, or 0.3% lower, while Brent crude futures were down 30 cents, or 0.36%, at $82.86 a barrel, Money.usnews.com reported.
Both benchmarks closed more than 90 cents higher on Friday.
The dollar hovered near a seven-week peak on Monday after a slew of strong US economic data reinforced the view that the Federal Reserve will have to raise interest rates further and for longer.
A firm dollar makes commodities priced in the US currency more expensive for holders of other currencies.
"Crude continues to take direction from the sentiment in the broader financial markets," said Vandana Hari, founder of oil market analysis provider Vanda Insights.
Fears of a hawkish Fed returned to the fore on Friday after the personal consumption expenditures price index, shot up 0.6% last month after gaining 0.2% in December.
"If risk-aversion continues to grow, crude will likely come under renewed pressure," said Hari.
Adding to the downside pressure, US crude oil inventories surged to the highest level since May 2021 last week, data from the Energy Information Administration showed.