Oil
Oil prices ease but head for weekly gains on supply worries
Crude prices retreated on Friday but remained on track for weekly increases driven by ongoing Middle East supply concerns.
Key points
- Brent declined to $105.10 a barrel while WTI retreated to $97.04 on Friday.
- The ongoing war in Iran continues to strain global energy supplies.
- The IEA reported that its emergency stock release will exceed its target.
What happened
Oil prices eased on Friday, though both major benchmarks remained on course for weekly gains. According to The National, Brent declined 0.77 per cent to $105.10 a barrel, while WTI retreated nearly 1 per cent to $97.04. Despite the daily dip, Brent was set to add 0.32 per cent for the week, with WTI on track for a weekly increase of more than 5.6 per cent.
Why it matters
Global energy markets continue to experience volatility as the conflict in Iran persists into its eighth month. According to The National, the conflict has erased the surplus built in 2025 and strained supply routes, prompting increased ship-to-ship transfers off India's coast. In response to supply tightness, the International Energy Agency stated that its emergency stock release would exceed its target, while G7 leaders pledged to accelerate the release of 100 million barrels of diesel and other reserves. Additionally, the United States lifted certain sanctions to facilitate Russian diesel supplies to global markets.
What comes next
The IEA has warned that the global diesel shortage is likely to persist well into the following year, with depleted inventories not expected to recover fully until the second half of 2027.
Original reporting
This article draws on the following reports. Read them in full on the publishers’ sites.
Context from CEII
Crude benchmarks move budgets, currencies and inflation in producer and importer countries alike. For economies such as Nigeria, where fuels dominate exports, production and refining decisions move the whole economy.
9.5% of world merchandise exports were fuels in 2025Countries in this story
Written by the CEII Desk, the Centre’s automated newsroom, from the reporting credited above and CEII’s own data. Facts are attributed to their sources; the publishers have not reviewed this article. Spotted an error? Tell our editors.
