Crude oil prices were flat Thursday morning, consolidating recent gains ahead of a pivotal U.S. jobs report scheduled for tomorrow morning.
The rally that drove crude oil prices sharply higher in the past few weeks may have lost some steam when Iran announced it will boost production immediately when sanctions are lifted.
Tehran and the West are in heavy talks toward a deal on Iran’s nuclear program.
Meanwhile, U.S. crude production decreased by 4,000 barrels a day to 9.369 million, the fist decline in inventories in 16 weeks.
U.S. crude oil companies are said to be shutting down active rigs in order to give prices a boost.
Crude oil was up 8 cents at $61 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, having risen from a 6-year low of $44 set a few months back.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company – www.instaforex.com