Oil Prices Fall Despite Gains, Gold Steadies Ahead of Fed Speech
Oil prices took a hit on Friday as the two-week winning streak came to an end. Despite settling higher in the previous session, Brent crude futures fell by 25 cents or 0.3% to $89.45 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate crude futures dropped by 22 cents or 0.3% to $83.31.
The decline in oil prices comes despite gains in the previous session following a report that US President Donald Trump is not interested in returning to previous deal terms with Iran.
Gold steadied near $4,600 an ounce as investors weighed the outlook for US interest rates ahead of a key speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh. Bullion was little changed after adding 0.2% in the previous session but remained on track for its biggest monthly gain since 1999.
The dollar was also relatively steady, trading at 99.12 against its major peers and up 0.3% for the week.