2024-04-05T04:40:27+00:00
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/ Oil prices continued their gains on Friday and headed for a second weekly gain, supported by geopolitical tensions in Europe and the Middle East, concerns about tightening supply, and optimism about the growth of global demand for fuel as economies improve.
By 0425 GMT, Brent crude rose 40 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $91.05 per barrel.
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 23 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $86.82 a barrel.
The quarterly price target for Brent crude is $95 per barrel.
Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude are expected to achieve gains of more than 4% this week, rising for the second week in a row, after Iran, the third-largest producer in OPEC, vowed to take revenge on Israel for an attack that resulted in the killing of high-ranking Iranian military personnel.
Israel did not claim responsibility for the attack on the Iranian embassy compound in Syria on Monday.
Continued Ukrainian drone attacks on refineries in Russia may have disrupted more than 15% of Russia’s production capacity, hurting fuel production in the country, a NATO official said Thursday.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), led by Russia and its allies, known as OPEC+, this week kept its oil supply policy unchanged and pressured some countries to increase compliance with production cuts.
Global heavy oil supplies also shrank after Mexico and the United Arab Emirates reduced exports of these grades.
This comes amid strong growth in global oil demand of 1.4 million barrels per day in the first quarter, JPMorgan analysts said in a note.