Oil futures were up slightly Friday, buoyed by an upbeat read on Chinese manufacturing activity, but remain on track for a weekly loss after a rise in U.S. inventories and uncertainty around U.S.-China trade talks.
West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery CLZ19, +1.62% rose 30 cents, or 0.6%, to $54.48 a barrel, while January Brent crude BRNF20, +1.36%, the global benchmark, gained 20 cents, or 0.3%, to trade at $59.82 a barrel.
Analysts attributed the bounce in part to data Friday showing a rise in the Caixin China manufacturing purchasing managers index to a 32-month high of 51.7 last month from 51.4 in September.
