Oil Prices Gain on News of US Economic Growth

As of 9:10 am EDT, the price of crude had climbed by 1.17 percent to reach $78.37 a barrel and the price of heating oil had risen by the same 1.17 percent.

HEAT USA Price Report

Today’s average retail heating oil price per gallon: Down $0.05
Morning projection (for Friday’s average price per gallon): Up $0.05

After yesterday’s drop in oil prices, caused by the EIA’s report of a surprise increase in gasoline inventories, crude and heating oil prices rose Thursday morning after data showed that the US economy grew in from July to September, the first quarter of growth in a year. Economic recovery in the US—the world’s largest consumer of energy—should raise global oil demand, which would push the price of crude and heating oil higher. While oil demand remains weak in the near term, a decline in the dollar has supported higher oil prices as well, as investors look to commodities to hedge against inflation.

HEAT USA price experts report that signs of economic recovery will pressure oil prices to rise, but the lack of change in oil fundamentals—immense supply remains paired with low demand—could keep a ceiling on crude and heating oil prices.