Oil eked out a gain after a muted session with traders on standby amid mixed economic signals. 

West Texas Intermediate inched forward after a two-day loss of more than 5 per cent wiped out all of the gains from OPEC+’s surprise production cut. Oil has been tracking wider markets in recent sessions, as traders parse a slew of economic data in hopes of interpreting the U.S. central bank’s next rate hike decisions. 

“The current earnings season, as well as the macroeconomic reports in recent weeks, are sending mixed signals about recession risk,” said Pavel Molchanov, an analyst at Raymond James. “This is why oil prices are moving rather aimlessly — there is a lack of conviction in either direction.”

While front-month prices follow the whims of broader markets, recent supply-and-demand data has been mixed. The U.S. posted a largely bullish stockpile report this week, with crude inventories shrinking by 5.1 million barrels last week. But demand in Asia is being heavily scrutinized with fuel markets showing weakness in refiner profit margins. 

Despite current weakness, many traders and analysts are still betting demand from the world’s largest oil importer, China, will lead to price gains over the rest of the year.

Meanwhile, U.S. growth slackened in the first quarter by more than anticipated while one measure of inflation rose to a one-year high. Now, investors are gearing up for U.S. Federal Reserve and European Central Bank interest rate decisions next week for clues on the health of the economy and the path of monetary policy.

Prices:

• WTI for June delivery rose 46 cents to settle at US$74.76 a barrel in New York.
• Brent for June settlement rose 68 cents to settle at US$78.37 a barrel.