Oil steadies on fuel demand uncertainty

Oil prices steadied on Friday as the market was filled with uncertainty on fuel demand recovery. This came after coronavirus cases continued to surge while major oil producers began to loosen output cuts.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures gained 1 cent to $40.76 per barrel. Brent crude futures steadied at $43.37 per barrel. Both benchmarks are still on course for gains at the end of the week.

The United States reported 75,000 new coronavirus cases on Thursday. Australia and Spain posted their biggest daily surge in two months. Cases in India kept rising, while Brazil eased restriction measures.

Brent and WTI dropped 1% on Thursday after OPEC and its allies agreed to taper its record supply cuts to 7.7 million bpd from August to December.

However, producers like Iraq which did not commit to the earlier agreed cuts are set to slash more from their production in August and September.

Analysts expect the benchmarks to trade in the $40-$45 per barrel range despite the possibility of more U.S. oil supply and the uncertainty of fuel demand.