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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery added $1.36 to $59.12 on the New York Merc, while Brent for March added $1.35 to $63.34 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $16.50 to WTI, down from a discount of $14.80. Natural gas for February lost 23 cents to $3.16. The TSX energy index added 5.53 points to close at 299.25.

Oil prices closed a tumultuous week with a gain. Executives of several U.S. energy companies headed to the White House today to hear U.S. President Donald Trump's pitch for them to invest billions of dollars in Venezuela. Analysts say he may face a leery audience. As Barclays summarized, "The path to meaningful investment and production growth [in Venezuela] remains uncertain, requiring a stable government, clear investment terms and multiyear infrastructure rebuilding" -- tall orders at the best of times, let alone with oil prices near four-year lows.

Here in Canada, amid subsiding fears that Venezuelan crude will sideline Canadian barrels overnight, analysts rallied around a different message: "buy the dip." So urged National Bank analysts Dan Payne and Travis Wood in a research note this morning (parts of which appeared in today's Globe and Mail). The Venezuela oil grab has "temporarily spooked" investors, they wrote, but a "meaningful" production increase is likely two to five years away, given myriad logistical, political and economic challenges. In the nearer term, they see "green shoots" for Canadian producers as investors "gain confidence in [their] long-term staying power."

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