Oil ends 2-day rally, drops 1% ahead of US rigs, NFP data

Oil prices on both sides of the Atlantic turned lower on the final trading day of the week, with the investors seeking to book profits after the recent strength heading into the crucial US jobs report.

Oil extends correction into Europe

Currently, both crude benchmarks now drop nearly 1%, with Brent at $ 43.88, while WTI hovers around 41.50 barrier. Oil prices fell back into losses, having stalled two consecutive sessions of gains, as investors turn nervous ahead of the US rigs count as well as employment data.

Oil prices rallied yesterday on the back of an unexpected drawdown in the gasoline stockpiles, while upbeat data from market intelligence firm Genscape, which showed that stockpiles at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery hub fell by over 89,000 barrels last week, also added to the rebound in oil prices.

Markets are now awaiting fresh US rig count data for this week, following a rise of three rigs a week before. Rig counts have grown for five straight weeks. While the upcoming US payrolls data may also have major impact on the greenback, eventually impacting the dollar-denominated oil.