Oil drilling rigs
Oil prices were mixed in Friday’s trading as investors weighed the risk of renewed tensions between the US and Iran against signs of a recovery in Middle East supplies. 
Priyanka Sachdeva, Senior Market Analyst at Phillip Nova, said the market’s immediate focus was on the availability and smooth flow of crude oil and refined products from the Middle East to the rest of the world. She added that the $100-a-barrel mark became a psychological threshold for market positioning.
Brent crude is on track to post a weekly decline of around 2%, while US crude is expected to gain approximately 0.3% over the week, according to Reuters.
Markets are also awaiting data from Baker Hughes on the number of active oil and gas rigs in the US, due later today, for further indications of the outlook for US supply.
Changes in benchmark crude futures
Contract
Price ($/bbl)
Change ($)
Change (%)
Brent (December delivery)
102.34
+0.03
—
Nymex (November delivery)
92.65
(0.22)
(0.25%)
At 7:52 a.m. Makkah time.
Oil drilling rigs
Oil prices were mixed in Friday’s trading as investors weighed the risk of renewed tensions between the US and Iran against signs of a recovery in Middle East supplies.
Priyanka Sachdeva, Senior Market Analyst at Phillip Nova, said the market’s immediate focus was on the availability and smooth flow of crude oil and refined products from the Middle East to the rest of the world. She added that the $100-a-barrel mark became a psychological threshold for market positioning.
Brent crude is on track to post a weekly decline of around 2%, while US crude is expected to gain approximately 0.3% over the week, according to Reuters.
Markets are also awaiting data from Baker Hughes on the number of active oil and gas rigs in the US, due later today, for further indications of the outlook for US supply.
Changes in benchmark crude futures
Contract
Price ($/bbl)
Change ($)
Change (%)
Brent (December delivery)
102.34
+0.03
—
Nymex (November delivery)
92.65
(0.22)
(0.25%)
At 7:52 a.m. Makkah time.
