Brent falls 0.75% to $104 a barrel while WTI drops 0.69% as traders assess Saudi pipeline recovery and wider Middle East risks.
WEB DESK: Oil prices fell for a third consecutive session on Friday as concerns over major supply disruptions from Saudi Arabia eased, outweighing continued uncertainty from the widening Middle East conflict.
Brent crude futures fell 79 cents, or 0.75%, to $104 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude declined 70 cents, or 0.69%, to $101.20 a barrel. Both benchmarks had fallen about 1% in the previous session.
Saudi Supply Concerns Ease
Oil prices had risen earlier in the week after reports that crude loadings at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea export hub of Yanbu had been suspended following damage to the country’s East-West pipeline.
Saudi Arabia also cancelled some deliveries to Europe after the pipeline was damaged in an attack, according to sources cited by Reuters.
Prices subsequently eased after reports that Saudi Arabia was working to restore around half of the pipeline’s capacity within days.
The kingdom has also been offering additional crude cargoes to Asian refiners through ship-to-ship transfers near Oman’s port of Sohar, helping reduce immediate concerns about supply shortages.
Brent and WTI Show Different Weekly Trends
Despite Friday’s decline, crude prices remain above $100 a barrel.
Brent was heading toward its first weekly decline in three weeks, while WTI was still on track for a weekly gain, according to the Reuters report.
Reuters reported that Brent was down around 0.5% for the week, while WTI was up about 1.2%.
Market participants are closely watching whether Saudi export flows can return to normal and whether oil transportation through the region becomes more stable.
Middle East Risks Remain
The decline in prices comes despite fresh fighting between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthis.
Saudi Arabia and the Iran-aligned Houthis exchanged strikes across their border on Thursday, adding to concerns about a broader regional conflict and its potential impact on energy supplies.
Oil transportation also remains exposed to risks around the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important energy shipping routes.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Navy said a Togo-flagged oil tanker was struck while attempting to pass through the Strait on Thursday, according to Iranian state media.
Markets Await Clearer Supply Signals
Analysts say the next major question for oil markets is whether physical crude flows can return to normal.
Priyanka Sachdeva, head of market insights at Phillip Nova, said that efforts to restore Saudi export capacity had reduced some immediate supply concerns. She also noted that sustained improvement in traffic through the Strait of Hormuz could reduce some of the geopolitical premium in oil prices.
However, estimates for how quickly Saudi pipeline operations and crude flows can fully recover remain varied.
For now, traders continue to balance signs of improving Saudi supply against the broader risks surrounding energy infrastructure and shipping routes across the Middle East.
