Brent crude settles lower, posts gains for third straight week

Oil drilling rigs

Oil prices declined on Friday, as markets worried that the US trade war could spark a global recession, yet they marked their third consecutive weekly gain.

Brent crude futures for May delivery settled 0.55%, or 40 cents, lower at $73.63 a barrel, but gained over 2% for the week.

WTI crude futures for May delivery declined 0.8%, or 56 cents, to $69.36 a barrel, though it rose 1.6% for the week.

Meanwhile, Baker Hughes data showed that the US oil rig count fell by two rigs to 484 in the week ended March 28.