Oil was set for its fourth weekly gain on signs of tightening supply, while liquidity fell to the lowest since late January.

West Texas Intermediate futures rose above $76 a barrel to take their advance for the week to 1.1%. Russian flows showed signs of dropping this week as Saudi Arabia also cuts output, while China, the world's biggest crude importer, was stepping up efforts to boost its flagging economic recovery.

Traders have lately been reducing their exposure to oil futures markets, with open interest in the US benchmark falling sharply over the week.

Crude has been rallying since late June on signs the market is tightening, but is still lower for the year. China's lackluster recovery has been a major drag on demand this year, as has the Federal Reserve's aggressive monetary policy.

The US central bank is expected to raise rates next week and odds for a further move higher went up slightly after initial jobless claims data, released Thursday, pointed to labor market strength.

WTI for September delivery rose 0.9% to $76.32 a barrel at 7:20 a.m. in London. Brent for September settlement gained 0.9% to $80.34 a barrel.

Source : Bloomberg