Oil heads for weekly gain with Mideast supply risks

Crude prices slipped on Friday, but the market was still heading for a weekly gain, the Express Tribune reported. Brent eased 71 cents on Friday to reach $105.21 per barrel, while WTI dropped 77 cents to $97.20. Uncertainty over Middle East supplies and a bigger-than-forecast fall in US crude stocks kept prices supported.

WTI had already climbed more than 3% on Thursday after a sizeable US inventory drawdown tied to hurricane-related production shut-ins. So far this week, Brent has risen 0.44%, while WTI has gained 5.81%. ING analysts said traders are building in a significant risk premium over doubts about oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, and that a US-Iran agreement was needed to restore confidence.

Kpler's ship tracking put flows through the Strait at 11.62 million barrels per day across seven days to October 13, roughly 68% of a 17.15 million bpd benchmark. Iran has said its strikes are increasing in retaliation for a US port blockade and tougher sanctions imposed last month. Separately, the International Energy Agency agreed on Thursday to make more than 20 million barrels of diesel available to the market.