Credit: Investing.com - Crude oil futures inched marginally lower Thursday, after data showed that the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. rose less-than-expected last week, while a U.S. government shutdown entered its third day.
Losses were limited after energy company TransCanada said Wednesday that it would complete work on the southern leg of its Keystone Pipeline later this month.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in November traded at USD103.91 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, down 0.2%.
New York-traded oil futures traded in a range between USD103.46 a barrel, the daily low and a session high of USD104.37 a barrel. The November contract settled 2% higher at USD104.10 a barrel on Wednesday.
Oil futures were likely to find near-term support at USD101.43 a barrel, Wednesday's low and resistance at USD105.09 a barrel, the high from September 23.
The U.S. Department of Labor said earlier that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending September 28 increased by 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 308,000.
Jobless claims for the preceding week were revised up to a gain of 307,000 from a previously reported increase of 305,000. Analysts had expected U.S. jobless claims to rise by 6,000 to 313,000 last week.
The data came as investors continued to weigh the implications of a protracted U.S. government shutdown.
President Barack Obama met with Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress on Wednesday, although a solution still seemed unlikely.
Markets were also considering how the political deadlock in Washington will impact negotiations to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, which the U.S. Treasury Department has estimated will be reached by October 17.
Moody's Investors Service warned that a failure to raise the debt limit would result in a worse outcome for financial markets than a government shutdown.
Prices remained supported after TransCanada said it was due to complete work on an oil pipeline that will connect Cushing, Oklahoma to refineries along the Gulf Coast by the end of this month, which should increase capacity and reduce the level of stockpiles at Cushing.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for November delivery added 0.45% to trade at USD109.68 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD5.77 a barrel.
In China, a government report released earlier showed that the nation's non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index climbed to a six-month high of 55.4 in September from 53.9 in August.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
