U.S. crude oil ended higher for a second straight day on Thursday, after the dollar dropped against a basket of major currencies following a slew of weak macroeconomic data out of the U.S. A weak dollar tends to encourage buying in dollar-denominated commodities as it makes them cheaper to holders of other currencies.
A U.S. Labor Department report on Thursday showed consumer price inflation in the country to have dropped more than expected in April, due mainly to a substantial decline in energy prices.
Among some weak data, first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose more than anticipated in the week ended May 11, following a recent downward trend. Meanwhile, a Commerce Department report showed U.S. housing starts dropped much more than anticipated in April, although building permits increased substantially.
Manufacturing firms responding to the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's monthly Business Outlook Survey indicated an unexpected contraction in regional manufacturing activity in May.
Light Sweet Crude Oil futures for June delivery, the most actively traded contract, gained $0.86 or 0.9 percent to close at $95.16 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Thursday.
Crude prices for June delivery scaled a high of $95.57 a barrel intraday and a low of $93.23.
Yesterday, oil settled marginally higher with the Energy Information Administration's weekly report showing a surprising decline in U.S. crude oil stockpile, even as gasoline inventories unexpectedly edged up last week.
The dollar initially trended higher intraday but slipped following some disappointing data from the U.S.. A weaker dollar tends to encourage buying in dollar-priced commodities as it makes them cheaper to holders of other currencies.
The dollar index, which tracks the U.S. unit against six major currencies, traded at 83.62 on Thursday, down from 83.79 late Wednesday in North American trade. The dollar scaled a high of 84.00 intraday and a low of 83.45.
The euro traded higher against the dollar at $1.2906 on Thursday, as compared to $1.2887 late Wednesday in North America. The euro scaled a high of $1.2930 intraday and a low of $1.2848.
In economic news from the U.S., a Labor Department report said initial jobless claims rose to 360,000, an increase of 32,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 328,000. Economists had expected claims to climb to 330,000 from the 323,000 originally reported for the previous week.
Separately, the U.S. Labor Department said its consumer price index fell by 0.4 percent in April following a 0.2 percent drop in March. Economists expected prices to decrease by about 0.3 percent. Excluding food and energy prices, the core consumer price index edged up by 0.1 percent in April, matching the increase seen in the previous month. Core prices had been expected to rise by 0.2 percent.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Commerce Department said housing starts tumbled 16.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 853,000 in April from the revised March estimate of 1.021 million. Economists expected housing starts to drop to an annual rate of 969,000 from the 1.036 million originally reported for the previous month. The report also showed building permits to have jumped 14.3 percent to an annual rate of 1.017 million in April from the revised March rate of 890,000.
The Philly Fed report on Thursday showed its diffusion index of current activity to have dropped to a negative 5.2 in May from a positive 1.3 in April, with a negative reading indicating a contraction in regional manufacturing activity. Economists expected the index to climb to a positive reading of 2.2.
Elsewhere, eurozone inflation slowed as initially estimated to 1.2 percent in April from 1.7 percent in March, final data from Eurostat showed. Month-on-month, prices were down 0.1 percent. Core inflation that excludes energy, food, alcohol and tobacco, dropped to 1 percent from 1.5 percent a month ago.
Separately, the Eurostat said eurozone trade surplus more than doubled in March from a month ago. The surplus amounted to EUR 22.9 billion in March, higher than EUR 10.1 billion in February. In March 2012, the balance was positive at EUR 6.9 billion.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.