Daily Times

Crude oil prices remained mixed on Friday but were still on track to record a weekly loss on fuel demand concerns and prospects of higher-for-longer interest rates. As of 1325 hours GMT, Brent, the international benchmark for two-thirds of the world’s oil, gained $0.07 (-0.08 percent) to reach $83.74 a barrel. However, the West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the main oil benchmark for North America, went down by $0.07 (-0.09 percent) to $78.88 a barrel. On the other hand, the price of Arab Light decreased by $1.21 (-1.40 percent) to reach $85.44 a barrel. Similarly, the price of Russian Sokol decreased by $1.24 (-1.58 percent) to $77.23 a barrel. On the other hand, the price for Opec Basket decreased by $1.55 (-1.75 percent) at $87.17 a barrel. Brent crude has fallen by about 8 percent since reaching a six-month high of $91.17 a barrel in April, as the fallout from Iran’s attack on Israel has remained limited. Meanwhile, Turkey has confirmed that it would halt all trade with Israel until the country improves the flow of aid into Gaza. Officials said the pause went into effect on Thursday.