NEW YORK, July 13 (Xinhua) -- Oil prices rallied on Friday as traders continued to digest the monthly report from the International Energy Agency (IEA).
The IEA said in a report released Thursday that various supply concerns, such as the United States' sanction on Iran and the uncertainty surrounding Libya, provided supports to oil prices, adding that this vulnerability currently underpins oil prices and seems likely to continue doing so.
"Rising production from Middle East Gulf countries and Russia, welcome though it is, comes at the expense of the world's spare capacity cushion, which might be stretched to the limit," said the IEA.
Analysts said that traders bought the dip after Wednesday's heavy sell-off also provide some upward jolts to the market.
Meanwhile, the number of rigs operating in U.S. oil fields was unchanged at 863 this week, oilfield service firm Baker Hughes said in its weekly report on Friday.
The West Texas Intermediate for August delivery rose 0.68 U.S. dollar to settle at 71.01 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for September delivery added 0.88 dollar to 75.33 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
