Oil futures finished higher on Friday despite booking a weekly loss, as investors focused on a decline in active rigs, according to Bloomberg MarketWatch.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, September West Texas Intermediate gained 55 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at $49.58 a barrel. For the week, WTI slipped by 0.3%.
October Brent crude, the global benchmark, climbed 41 cents, or 0.8%, to end trading at $52.42 a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange. Brent crude ended the week down about 0.4%.
Meanwhile, September natural gas dropped 2.6 cents, or 0.9%, to settle at $2.7740 per million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. For the week, natural gas futures declined 5.7%, marking its third consecutive weekly drop.
