Fog, and 31 ° F. 
NEW YORK (DTN) — New York Mercantile Exchange oil futures rallied sharply immediately after federal data came out showing initial jobless claims fell more-than-expected before giving up some the gains at the start of regular trade Thursday morning.
At the 9:00 AM ET opening bell, October NYMEX WTI crude futures were up 56cts at $73.08 after trading a short while ago to a pre-market high of $73.76, having pulled up from Wednesday’s 11-week low on the spot continuation chart of $70.76.
The spot-month crude contract is expected to test initial technical resistance near $74.60, with major support holding near $69.50.
In products trade, September NYMEX No. 2 heating oil futures were up 2.45cts at $1.9951 gal at the open, after rising to a pre-market high of $2.0072, off Wednesday’s 6-1/2 week low on the spot continuation chart at $1.9256. Initial resistance is seen near $2.0185, and then at $2.0420.
September NYMEX RBOB gasoline futures were up 2.43cts at $1.8882 gal, after climbing to a pre-market high of $1.8600, well off Wednesday’s nine-month low on the spot continuation chart at $1.8241. Short-term resistance is seen at near $1.9375, and then at $1.9715.
Oil prices were already consolidating gains from Wednesday when the Labor Department released data today at 8:30 AM ET showing that weekly initial jobless claims fell by a more-than-expected 31,000 to 473,000, reinforcing optimism that boosted oil and equities during overnight trade.
Oil prices were also buoyed by technical factors and a weaker U.S.
dollar, which edged out concerns about rising U.S. oil inventories and soft demand.
