July 7 Reuters Oil prices rose on Friday and were on track for their second straight weekly gain, as resilient demand resulted in a largerthanexpected fall in U.S. oil stocks, offsetting fears of higher U.S. interest rates.

Brent crude futures were up 45 cents, or 0.6, at 76.97 a barrel at 0615 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 44 cents, also 0.6, to 72.24 a barrel.

Both benchmarks were set to gain about 2 for the second straight week.

The crude demand outlook is starting to look better as we enter peak summer travel in the U.S., and as the Saudis were able to raise prices to Europe and Asia, said Edward Moya, an analyst at OANDA.

U.S. crude stocks fell more than expected on strong refining demand, while gasoline inventories posted a large draw after an increase in driving last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Thursday.

That comes as top oil exporters Saudi Arabia and Russia announced a fresh round of output cuts for August. The total cuts now stand at more than five million barrels per day bpd, equating to 5 of global oil output.

However, oil price gains were capped by strengthening expectations that the U.S. central bank is likely to raise interest rates at its July 2526 meeting after holding rates steady at 55.25 in June.

The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits increased moderately last week, while private payrolls surged in June, data showed on Thursday, raising the likelihood of a Federal…