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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

U.S. markets were closed for Independence Day, leading to relatively muted trading. West Texas Intermediate crude for August delivery lost 50 cents to $66.50 in electronic trading on the New York Merc, while Brent for September lost 50 cents to $68.30 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $11.60 to WTI, up from a discount of $12.10. Natural gas for August lost two cents to $3.38. The TSX energy index lost a fraction of a point to close at 266.84.

While WTI did not officially settle today because of the U.S. holiday, it effectively eked out a modest weekly gain, as did Brent. Traders are now turning their attention to this weekend's OPEC+ meeting, with the group widely expected to announce another accelerated output hike. Meanwhile, Barclays has raised its Brent oil forecast to $72 (U.S.) for 2025 and to $70 (U.S.) for 2026, up respectively from $66 (U.S.) and $60 (U.S.). It cited an improving demand outlook and "better-than-expected fundamentals."

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