Oil Closes at Highest Since Early March on Robust Jobs Report
- GasBuddy sees gasoline demand down 20% from last year
- Gains limited by jitters over second wave of pandemic
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Oil closed at its highest level in almost four months before the U.S. holiday weekend, cheered by signs the world’s biggest economy is recovering from coronavirus-related lockdowns, even as fears linger over a resurgence.
Prices strengthened after a Labor Department report showed that payrolls rose by 4.8 million in June and the previous month was revised higher. That built on gains on Wednesday from a bigger-than-expected drop in U.S. crude stockpiles as well as plunging output from OPEC producers. But further upside may be limited as fresh outbreaks of the virus are reported across the nation, prompting some states to pause or even reverse re-opening measures.