Oil prices stable before weekend

LONDON, June 27: Global oil prices steadied Friday after lacklustre US economic data that has fuelled bearish sentiment about demand in the world's top crude consumers, analysts said. In late morning London deals, Brent crude for delivery in August rose 13 cents to trade at $113.34 a barrel compared with Thursday's close. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for August dipped a cent to $105.38 a barrel. The US Commerce Department said Thursday that consumer spending rose a mere 0.2 per cent in May after flattening in April, raising questions about recovery in the world's biggest economy.  "This has cast doubt on the growth outlook for the second quarter of this year, particularly after a wider-than-expected contraction in the first quarter," Desmond Chua, market analyst at CMC Markets in Singapore, said, referring to weak GDP figures released Wednesday.
     — AFP