Global crude benchmarks are heading for a 7.5% weekly loss to $83.38 a barrel, remaining well off their recent $102 peak despite a daily rally triggered by Middle Eastern security threats.
According to Saudi defense statements and market data, Brent crude gained 1% on Friday following an overnight jump of 3.8% after Riyadh warned of imminent attacks on its energy infrastructure.
The threat involves coordinated strikes by Yemen’s Houthi rebels and Iran-backed Iraqi militias, which recently launched cross-border attacks in Saudi Arabia’s Najran Province and continued disrupting Red Sea maritime shipping routes.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude mirrored the global benchmark’s upward daily momentum, advancing more than 3.7% to trade near $78.30 a barrel as buyers factored in potential Middle Eastern seaborne supply disruptions.
However, earlier diplomatic de-escalation signals and broader macroeconomic headwinds weighed heavily on weekly sentiment, keeping both benchmarks down approximately 18% from their high two weeks prior.
