Crude oil futures ended higher on Friday, after two constitutive session of losses, after data showed stronger than expected growth in U.S. non-farm payroll employment in the month of September. The data said non-farm payroll employment shot up by 336,000 jobs in September compared to street estimates for an increase of about 170,000 jobs. Meanwhile, Russia's government said it had withdrawn a ban on diesel exports delivered to sea ports via pipelines, removing a large chunk of restrictions it put in place last month. Besides, a report released by Baker Hughes showed that the total active drilling rigs in the US dropped by 4 this week.
Benchmark crude oil futures for November delivery rose $0.48 or about 0.6 percent to settle at $82.79 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for December delivery gained $0.54 or about 0.6 percent to settle at $84.58 a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.