Crude futures settled in mixed territory Thursday, while gasoline futures showed the biggest price action, moving higher as holiday travel soon gets underway.
NYMEX December crude settled down 21 cents to $40.54/b. ICE January Brent settled 4 cents higher at $44.18/b.
NYMEX December ULSD settled almost unchanged, down 86 points at $1.3718/gal, while NYMEX December RBOB settled up 2.18 cents at $1.2879/gal.
"Everyone is looking ahead to [gasoline] demand picking up next week" because of the Thanksgiving holiday, Price Futures Group analyst Phil Flynn said.
Front-month NYMEX RBOB was poised for a rebound, he said, after prices touched year-to-date lows this past week.
US implied gasoline demand fell 334,000 b/d to 9.054 million b/d the week that ended Friday, but was still 1.5% above the five-year average for the same reporting period, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday.
The dollar lost ground against other major currencies Thursday, helping support the oil complex, particularly ICE Brent. The dollar index was down 0.7 point at 98.97 Thursday afternoon.
Saudi Arabia's oil minister Ali Naimi spoke Thursday about the need for more energy investment in the Middle East and North Africa despite lower oil prices.
"The challenge we are facing in the Arab world highlights our need for more joint Arab action in the fields of oil and energy," he said.
Attending a conference in Bahrain, Naimi also stressed the historic role played by Saudi Arabia maintaining oil market stability and cooperating with other oil-producing states.
OPEC members gather December 4 in Vienna to discuss policy, though the group is widely seen as unlikely to keep output.
"The market isn't putting much store in the comment by Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi that Saudi Arabia is working with other producers to stabilize oil prices, viewing the comment as more of a longer-term 'motherhood' statement than a commitment to immediate action," Citi Futures and OTC Clearing analyst Tim Evans said in a note.
US crude stocks have increased eight weeks in a row, according to EIA data, keeping the market's attention fixed on oversupply.
Goldman Sachs said in a research note that oil prices could be headed lower in the event of a mild winter in the US and Europe.
"If this materializes, it would likely be the trigger for adjustments through the physical market, pushing oil prices down to cash costs, which we estimate are likely around $20/b."
