LONDON: As a geopolitical risk premium returned to oil markets due to the escalating conflict in Ukraine, oil prices dipped slightly on Friday but were still on course for a weekly increase of about 4%.
By 4:12 p.m. Saudi time, Brent crude futures dropped 65 cents, or 0.88 percent, to $73.58 a barrel. At $69.44 a barrel, US West Texas Intermediate oil futures dropped 66 cents, or 0.94 percent.
As the bloc’s leading services sector shrank and manufacturing fell further into recession, eurozone business activity took an unexpectedly steep turn for the worst this month, pushing prices on Friday.
Tengiz, Kazakhstan’s largest oilfield, is expected to resume full production in early December, according to a Friday report by the Russian news agency Interfax. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan’s energy ministry stated that it intends to increase oil production from 88 million tonnes in 2024 to 90 million tonnes in 2025.
As Moscow intensifies its offensive in Ukraine after the United States and Britain permitted Kyiv to launch missile strikes closer into Russia, both contracts are expected to rise by around 4% this week. According to Ole Hansen, an analyst at Saxo Bank, “the Russia-Ukraine escalation has raised geopolitical tensions beyond levels seen during the year-long conflict between Israel and Iran-backed militants” on Friday.
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