*
Oil gained over 6% last week on OPEC+ cuts, US inventory
drop
*
Progress on resuming Iraq northern oil exports in view
*
US inflation data to help investors gauge Fed rate hike
path
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OPEC, IEA reports due this week
(Updates with settlement prices)
By Laura Sanicola
April 10 (Reuters) - Oil prices settled lower on Monday,
after rising for three straight weeks, as concern about further
interest rate hikes that could curb demand balanced the prospect
of a tighter market due to supply cuts from OPEC+ producers.
The U.S. dollar rose after U.S. jobs data pointed to a tight
labor market, heightening expectations of another Federal
Reserve rate hike. Dollar strength makes oil more expensive for
other currency holders and can weigh on demand.
Brent crude settled down 96 cents, or 0.2%, at
$84.58 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate also
fell 94, or 0.1%, to $79.74. Both benchmarks fell by more than
$1 earlier in the session
"We look for this week's trade to be heavily influenced by
inflation data featured by Wednesday's CPI and Thursday's PPI
that will likely revive the specter of higher interest rates
that could strengthen the U.S. dollar," said Jim Ritterbusch,
president of Ritterbusch and Associates in Galena, Illinois.
Crude last week jumped more than 6% after OPEC+, the
Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and
allies including Russia, surprised the market with a new round
of production cuts starting in May.
Oil also drew support from a steeper-than-expected drop in
U.S. crude inventories last week, as well as a decline in
gasoline and distillate stocks, hinting at rising demand.
In global financial markets, a U.S. inflation report to be
released on Wednesday could help investors gauge the near-term
trajectory for interest rates.
Also coming up are monthly reports from OPEC on Thursday and
the International Energy Agency on Friday, which will update oil
demand and supply forecasts.
(Additional reporting by Alex Lawler; Additional reporting by
Florence Tan in Singapore and Mohi Narayan in New Delhi; Editing
by Christopher Cushing, Kirsten Donovan, Barbara Lewis and
Sandra Maler)
