Still, oil price losses were curbed by plans for US President-elect Joe Biden to announce trillions of dollars in new virus relief bills this week, much to be funded through increased borrowing.
Oil would have to hit $60 to $65 per barrel to restore US output by 1 million barrels per day while improving investor returns, said Raoul LeBlanc, a vice president at data provider IHS Markit.
Tuesday's figures from Australia and New Zealand Banking Group showed total job ads grew 9.2% in December from November, when they surged a revised 13.5%.
Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday used her New Year greeting to warn Germans the "historic" coronavirus crisis will extend into 2021 even if vaccines bring some hope.
The EU has rejected the latest UK offer on the crucial sticking point of fishing but is ready to pursue an agreement even beyond the end of the year cut-off, diplomats said.
China will maintain policy support for its economic recovery, avoiding a sudden shift in policy, to help keep economic growth within a reasonable range in 2021, the Xinhua news agency said on Friday.
Airlines have developed training programmes for pilots re-entering service ranging from theory refreshers to multiple simulator sessions and supervised in-flight checks, depending on the length of absence.