Oil prices were mixed in Asian trade Monday as weak energy demand and concerns over more fiscal battles in Washington tempered news of a modest growth in the US jobs market.
New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in February shed two cents to $93.07 a barrel while Brent North Sea crude for February delivery gained 14 cents to $111.45.
Data on Friday showed that the US economy generated 155,000 jobs in
December, and the unemployment rate held at 7.8 percent.
However, a US government report last week showing softer fuel demand outweighed that news, Phillip Futures said in a market commentary.
Weaker US energy demand “added to bearish concerns about oil markets, which have been closely monitoring economic data for signals about consumption, which is under pressure because of the struggling economy”, Phillip Futures added.
