Brent crude rises, heading for weekly gains of about 6%

Oil drilling platform

Oil prices rose during Friday's trading, heading for weekly gains amid renewed fears of energy supply disruptions in the Middle East following the escalation of clashes between the United States and Iran this week.

Over the week, Brent crude is heading for gains of about 6%, while US crude is trading up 5% from last Friday's close, according to Reuters.

Change in futures prices of the two benchmark crudes

Crude

Price ($/barrel)

Change ($)

Change (%)

Brent (September delivery)

76.48

+0.18

+0.25%

NYMEX (August delivery)

72.22

+0.14

+0.20%

* At exactly 07:56 AM Mecca time.

Vandana Hari, founder of Vanda Insights oil market analysis platform, said that prices have retreated slightly from their mid-week peak, but the risk premium remains significant as traffic slows in the Strait of Hormuz.

Meanwhile, Daniel Hynes, senior commodity strategist at ANZ Bank, noted that despite the US intensifying attacks on military sites in Iran, markets drew some reassurance from the US administration's decision to avoid targeting Iranian energy infrastructure.

Markets are awaiting the release of US oil and gas rig count data from Baker Hughes later today to gauge US supply prospects.

Brent and NYMEX crude prices

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