Highlights US June retail sales exceed expectations Biden visit to Saudi Arabia unlikely to result in more supply Brent backwardation widens Crude oil futures settled higher July 15, as recession fears eased after a fresh round of US data painted a still-robust picture of the economy. Not registered? Receive daily email alerts, subscriber notes & personalize your experience. Register Now NYMEX August WTI settled $1.81 higher at $97.59/b and ICE September Brent climbed $2.06 to settle at $101.16/b. “Crude prices surged after an impressive retail sales report reminded just how strong the US economy remains,” OANDA senior market analyst Ed Moya said in a note. “The oil market was down earlier in the week on demand destruction fears, so today’s retail sales report and University of Michigan consumer sentiment data helped undo some of that.” US retail sales surged 1% in June, Commerce Department data showed July 15, exceeding […]