Oil prices retreated on Friday after wild swings during the week, as the prospect of extra supply from Iran returning to the market outweighed fears of a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine, which could disrupt supply.
Brent crude futures fell 68 cents, or 0.7%, to $92.29 a barrel at 0124 GMT, extending a 1.9% drop from the previous session. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures shed 67 cents, or 0.7%, to $91.09 a barrel, after sliding 2% in the previous session.
Both benchmark contracts were headed for their first weekly fall in nine weeks after hitting their highest points since September 2014, with a deal taking shape to revive Iran’s 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers. Diplomats said the draft accord outlines a sequence of steps that would eventually lead to granting waivers on oil sanctions.
That would bring about 1 million barrels a day of oil back to the market, but the timing is unclear. “Nevertheless, the spectre of a potential 1 million b/d hitting the oil market saw Brent crude oil prices come under pressure,” ANZ Research analysts said in a note.
