WTI trades cautiously near $62.50 ahead of US NFP, OPEC meeting

• WTI trades under pressure ahead of the US NFP data for August, and the OPEC+ meeting.
• Economists expect the job growth to have remained steady.
• OPEC+ members are expected to hike Oil production further.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI), futures on NYMEX, trades with caution around $62.50 during the late European trading session on Friday. The Oil price faces selling pressure as United States (US) oil inventory data for the week ending July 29 came in surprisingly higher.

The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported on Thursday that Oil stockpiles rose by 2.415 million barrels, while the inventory was expected to decline by 1.80 million barrels.

Rising Oil inventory signifies a slowdown in the energy demand, which results in a decline in the Oil price. For fresh cues on the Oil demand in the US, investors await key Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) data for August, which will be published at 12:30 GMT.

According to expectations, the US economy added 75K fresh workers, almost in line with the July's reading of 73K. The Unemployment Rate is expected to have accelerated to 4.3% from the former release of 4.2%.

Signs of cooling job demand would weigh further on the Oil price. On the contrary, improving job market conditions will indicate an increase in the energy demand going forward.

On the supply front, investors await OPEC+ meeting about adjustment in output hike, which is scheduled for Sunday.

According to a report from Reuters, OPEC+ members were considering approving even more output hikes, following around 2.2 million barrels per day of expanded output so far in 2025. Such a scenario would weigh on the Oil price.