Oil gains 4 percent as investors weigh Middle East risk and US election

Doha: Oil prices settled higher on Friday and gained 4% on the week, with investors taking stock of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East as well as...

Doha: Oil prices settled higher on Friday and gained 4% on the week, with investors taking stock of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East as well as the US election next month.

Brent crude futures settled up $1.67, or 2.25%, at $76.05 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude closed $1.59 higher, or 2.27%, to $71.78.

Brent settled 4% up on the week, while WTI settled 3.7% higher on the week. Both benchmarks fluctuated last week largely on expectations of heightened or reduced Middle East risk, noted Al-Attiyah Foundation in its Weekly Energy Market Review. 

An Israeli strike killed three journalists in south Lebanon on Friday, Lebanon’s health ministry said, and the UN refugee agency warned that Israeli airstrikes on a border crossing with Syria were hindering refugees trying to flee the war.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there was a sense of urgency in getting to a diplomatic resolution to end the conflict in Lebanon between Israel and Iran-aligned Hezbollah, while calling for the protection of civilians.