U.S. crude-oil futures on Thursday gained the most in more than a month, buoyed by modestly upbeat data on European and Chinese manufacturing.
Light, sweet crude futures for delivery in December rose $1.57, or 2%, to settle at $82.09 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That was the largest one-day gain for a front-month crude contract since Sept. 16. December Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange gained $2.12, or 2.5%, to finish at $86.83 a barrel. That was Brent’s largest one-day dollar advance since Sept. 3, and its largest one-day percentage gain since June 12. Both benchmarks have finished higher in four out of the past six sessions.
The advance followed Wednesday’s loss that left U.S. crude futures with their lowest settlement since June 28, 2012, at $80.52 a barrel. That was prompted by the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s report that showed a higher-than-expected increase in supplies.
Activity in the eurozone’s manufacturing picked up slightly in October, with data firm Markit saying Thursday its monthly composite purchasing managers index rose to 52.2 from 52 in September. HSBC’s preliminary report on Chinese manufacturing activity in October came at 50.4 in October compared with the final September reading of 50.2.
Elsewhere in the energy complex, November natural gas fell 3.70 cents, or 1%, to settle at $3.6220 per million British thermal units on Nymex. The contract on Wednesday notched its lowest settlement since Nov. 19, 2013. Earlier Thursday, the EIA said U.S. natural-gas supplies rose 94 billion cubic feet on the week ended Oct. 17. That contrasted with expectations of an increase between 94 bcf and 98 bcf, according to analysts polled by Platts.
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