Oil dips, heads for 7% weekly gain

Oil drilling rigs

Oil prices edged lower on Friday, but both benchmark crude contracts remain on track for a weekly gain of around 7%, the largest since mid-June.

As of 08:07 a.m. Makkah time, Brent crude futures for December delivery slipped 0.3% or 21 cents to $65.78 per barrel.

Meanwhile, US WTI (Nymex) December futures — the most actively traded contract — fell 0.35% or 22 cents to $61.57 per barrel.

The decline comes amid profit-taking following Thursday’s sharp rally of more than 5%, after the US imposed sanctions on Russia’s Rosneft and Lukoil.

Traders are also awaiting the release of preliminary manufacturing PMI data for the UK, Germany, and the US later today, offering insights into the outlook for industrial activity in major economies.