Oil prices inch lower, heads for weekly gains

Oil drilling rigs

Oil prices edged lower on Friday as markets weighed concerns over the health of the world’s largest economy, though both benchmarks remain on track for weekly gains unless losses deepen later in the session.

Brent crude for November delivery saw a marginal decline of 0.1%, or 7 cents, to $67.37 a barrel by 08:04 am KSA time, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for October delivery fell 0.25%, or 16 cents, to $63.41.

“The market has been caught between conflicting signals. On the demand side, all energy agencies, including (the Energy Information Administration), have signalled concern about weakening demand, tempering expectations of significant near-term price upside,” said Priyanka Sachdeva, an analyst at Phillip Nova, as quoted by Reuters.

Russian steps to soften the impact of price volatility and Western sanctions helped ease concerns over potential supply disruptions, alongside comments from US President Donald Trump expressing a preference for lower oil prices over imposing sanctions on Russia.