Jan 13 Reuters Oil prices rose on Friday, set to gain more than 6 for the week, on solid signs of demand growth in top oil importer China and expectations of less aggressive interest rate rises in the United States.

Brent crude futures rose by 5 cents to 84.08 a barrel by 0746 GMT, off a session low of 83.50. U.S. West Texas Intermediate WTI crude futures gained 13 cents to 78.52 a barrel after falling to 77.97 earlier in the session.

Brent has jumped 6.7 so far this week and WTI is up 6.2, recouping most of last week39;s losses.

Analysts said recent Chinese crude purchases and a pickup in road traffic fuelled confidence in a demand recovery in the world39;s secondlargest economy following the reopening of its borders and easing of COVID19 curbs after protests last year.

Given the focus on energy security, we anticipate that Chinese imports will continue to pick up, particularly as refinery runs ramp and stockpiling crude remains a strategic priority, RBC commodity strategist Michael Tran told clients in a note.

In another encouraging sign, ANZ analysts said a congestion index covering the 15 Chinese cities with the largest number of vehicle registrations had risen 31 from a week earlier.

Oil prices have also been buoyed by a slide in the dollar to a nearly ninemonth low, after data showed U.S. inflation fell for the first time in 212 years, reinforcing expectations that the Federal Reserve would slow the pace of rate hikes.

A weaker greenback tends to boost…