Oil approached its record highs again on Thursday as prices headed higher after a short-lived slump. Light sweet crude for June delivery moved to $125.56, up $1.34 on the session. Oil touched an intraday high of $126.64 in the early going, chasing its record of $126.98 from Wednesday. The June contract will expire on Tuesday.
Oil fell on Wednesday and lost $1.58 on the session. Crude, which had closed higher in seven of the previous eight sessions and soared to record levels, hit an intraday low of $123.77. Trading took place as the Energy Information Administration revealed that crude oil inventories increased by 176,000 barrels to 325.8 million barrels. Analyst predicted an increase of about 2 million barrels.
Crude soared again on Tuesday and added to its record high. Light sweet crude moved up $1.57 on the session. Oil moved as high as $126.98 at around 11:35 a.m. ET, a fresh record intraday high. Oil added more than $10 a barrel or 8% last week amid ongoing global supply concerns.
Natural gas prices dropped on Thursday as traders considered the weekly inventory report. June natural gas moved to $11.35, down 25.1 cents on the session. Natural gas stockpiles were up 93 billion cubic feet in the recent week, according to an EIA report.
Stochastics and the RSI continued to indicate over-bought levels for June oil. The $130 may serve as psychological resistance if the rally continues. If June turns lower, last Thursday's low crossing of $121.58 could provide support.
On Thursday morning, the Department of Labor released its report on initial jobless claims in the week ended May 10, showing that jobless claims increased by a little more than economists had been anticipating. The report showed that jobless claims rose to 371,000, an increase of 6,000 from the previous week's unrevised figure of 365,000. Economists had expected a slightly smaller increase in jobless claims to about 370,000.
Meanwhile, manufacturing activity in New York state contracted once again in the month of May, according to a report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Thursday.
Later Thursday morning, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia released its report which showed that the index of activity in the sector rose to a negative 15.6 in May from a negative 24.9 in April, with a negative reading indicating a contraction in the sector. Economists had expected the index to come in at a -19.0.
The price of gold also turned back higher on Thursday in U.S. trading and reclaimed some of its losses from earlier in the week. Gold for June delivery moved to $885.30, up $18.80 on the session. The metal moved to as high as $876.00 in the early going.
Prices dropped to a 12-day low on Wednesday. Gold ended the session at $866.50, down $3.10 on the day. Prices plunged by $20.90 on Tuesday and returned some of last week's sharp gains. Gold also slipped slightly on Monday. Last week, the metal added $27.80 an ounce after seeing weakness in the previous week.
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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.