WTI Hovers Near $50 as Brent Crude Surges Over $52 a Barrel on Friday

Oil futures advanced on Friday while logging a gain of more than 8% for the week, according to Bloomberg MarketWatch.

September West Texas Intermediate crude rose 67 cents, or 1.4%, to settle at $49.71 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange—the highest finish for a most active contract since May 26. WTI ended nearly 8.6% higher for the week.

September Brent crude, the global benchmark, added $1.03, or 2%, to settle at $52.52 a barrel on London’s ICE Futures Exchange. For the week, Brent crude finished roughly 9.3% up.

Several oil exploration and production companies have announced cuts to their spending budget for the year in the wake of a year-to-date decline of approximately 8% for oil prices.

Back on the New York Mercantile Exchange, September natural gas shed 2.6 cents, or 0.9% to settle at $2.941 per million British thermal units. Natural gas notched a 0.7% loss for the week.