Oil heads for second weekly fall as US signals continued Iran blockade
Brent was on course for a 2.4% weekly decline and WTI for a 2.5% fall, while threats to Gulf shipping persisted.
Oil benchmarks were heading towards a second consecutive weekly loss on Nov 13, with the US signalling it would maintain its blockade of Iran. The prospect of less large-scale fighting weighed on prices, although attacks continued to threaten Middle East oil shipments.
At 0242 GMT, Brent stood at US$95.41 a barrel, down one cent, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) traded at US$88.52 a barrel after falling 20 cents, or 0.25%. Brent's expected weekly decline was 2.4%, following a 16% fall the previous week. WTI was set to lose 2.5%, after a 13% drop previously.
US President Donald Trump said on Truth Social that ending the war did not require an agreement with Iran. His comments indicated that the blockade affecting oil shipments, along with trade and economic sanctions, would remain.
Shipping risks persisted in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's military said explosions struck four oil tankers that had disregarded warnings, an account Reuters could not immediately verify. Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis also claimed attacks on a Saudi East-West oil pipeline pumping station, an oil facility in Yanbu and an Aramco building in Riyadh.
Higher US inventories added pressure. The Energy Information Administration said crude stocks increased by 4.7 million barrels, reaching 414.4 million barrels for the week ended Nov 6. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a draw of 1.1 million barrels. The agency attributed increases in crude and fuel stocks to weaker refined-products demand and higher oil imports.
