Oil steady at close, posts weekly gain of 7%

Oil drilling rigs

Oil wiped out earlier gains by the close of trade on Friday as US drilling activity picked up, but still logged strong weekly increases after a more than 5% jump in the prior session on US sanctions against Russia.

Brent December futures were little changed at $65.94 a barrel, up about 7.5% on the week. US WTI December fell 0.45% (−$0.29) to $61.50, but rose roughly 6.9% for the week.

Sanctions announced by President Donald Trump on Russia’s Rosneft and Lukoil prompted Chinese state firms to temporarily suspend purchases of Russian crude, while Indian refiners moved to trim imports.

Baker Hughes data on Friday showed the US oil rig count rose by two in the week to Oct. 24.