Investing.com - Crude oil futures moved higher in U.S. trade Friday, as an Italian government vote to approve austerity measures raised investor hopes of regional debt containment and an increase in global energy demand.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange light, sweet crude futures for December delivery traded at USD98.83 a barrel during early Asian trade, gaining 1.07%, after hitting a daily low of USD97.36.
Crude oil was poised for its longest streak of consecutive weekly gains since April of 2009.
On Friday, the Italian Senate approved, by a vote of 156 to 12, to approve the budget-cutting measures promised to the European Union in exchange for assistance in reining in the country’s national debt of USD2.6 trillion.
Yields on Italy’s 10-year bonds fell for the second day after rising to record levels earlier in the week, nearing the 7% threshold that prompted Ireland, Portugal and Greece to seek bailouts.
Passage of the measure was expected to be a precursor to the appointment of former European Union commissioner and economist Mario Monti to succeed outgoing Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
In Athens, Lucas Papademos was sworn in as the country’s new prime minister to replace outgoing Greek leader George Papandreou, adding further stability to a scenario of European debt progress.
Meanwhile in the U.S., the University of Michigan reported Friday that its Consumer Sentiment Index rose more than expected to 64.2 in November, up from 60.9 the previous month.
The University’s index is based on a survey of approximately 500 consumers and rates the relative level of current and future economic conditions in the U.S. Economists had forecast the index to rise to 60.1 for the period.
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Wall Street shares jumped on the news from Italy, on pace for their fourth gain in five sessions; The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2% to 12,135.29, the Nasdaq Composite Index added 1.62% to 2,667.33 and the S&P 500 gained 1.88% to trade at 1,263.15.
In late afternoon trade, European shares rallied on hopes that Italy would avoid succumbing to regional debt contagion, with France’s CAC leaping 2.79% to 3,150.38, Britain’s FTSE 100 advanced 1.8% to 5,542.79, while Germany’s DAX surged 3.26% to 6,059.29.
A rising U.S. dollar helped to provide downward pressure for oil futures, as dollar-denominated futures contracts tend to fall when the dollar rises.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, rose 0.11% to 75.19.
On the ICE Futures Exchange Brent oil futures for November delivery rose 0.51% to trade at USD114.28.