Oil prices ended mixed on Friday as traders assessed risks on the supply and the demand sides.
The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for June delivery lost 67 cents, or 0.6 percent, to settle at 104.69 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for June delivery increased 1.75 dollars, or 1.6 percent, to close at 109.34 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
The above market reactions came after a three-day winning streak for oil futures, which saw the U.S. crude standard and Brent rise 3.3 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively, on Thursday.
“The uptick since yesterday is attributable to the increased probability of an EU oil embargo against Russia now that Germany has stopped opposing such a measure, as media reported yesterday,” Carsten Fritsch, energy analyst at Commerzbank Research, said in a note on Friday.
German representatives to EU institutions lifted objections to a full embargo of Russian supplies provided Berlin was given enough time to find alternative supplies, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing government officials.
The news rekindled concerns over tight supplies.
Meanwhile, traders continued to weigh the impact of COVID-19 on the outlook of fuel demand.
For the week, the WTI and global crude benchmark climbed 2.6 percent and 2.5 percent, respectively, based on the front-month contracts.
