Original Coverage & Source Attribution: ca.finance.yahoo.com
Investing.com — Oil prices held onto gains on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington no longer needed a deal with Iran, weakening hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough to end the conflict and ease disruptions to Middle East energy supplies.
At 18:52 ET (23:52 GMT), U.S. Crude Oil WTI Futures rose 0.07% to $88.80 a barrel. Brent Oil Futures settled 3.4% higher at $95.95 a barrel overnight.
Trump also instructed Vice President JD Vance to shift his attention towards domestic priorities rather than negotiations with Tehran, dealing another setback to efforts to revive back-channel discussions.
In a Truth Social post on Thursday, Trump said Washington had secured significant financial leverage over Iran and control of the Strait of Hormuz, adding that it no longer needed an agreement with Tehran.
Despite the latest gains, Brent was heading for a second consecutive weekly decline after reaching a six-month high in late October.
Increased crude flows from the Middle East and hopes that Democrats’ gains in the U.S. midterm elections would accelerate efforts to end the conflict have weighed on the global benchmark. However, oil futures remain nearly 60% higher year to date, reflecting the scale of supply disruptions caused by the war.
Security risks across the Persian Gulf remain elevated. Risk consultancy Verisk Maplecroft recorded 36 confirmed attacks on commercial vessels across the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman in October, the highest monthly tally since the conflict began.
Iran has also maintained a hardline position on nuclear negotiations, with its Supreme National Security Council secretary ruling out any removal of the country’s enriched nuclear material. Attacks on vessels east of Hormuz have further underscored the risks to commercial shipping.
On the supply side, OPEC crude production rose by 1.96 million barrels per day to 27.16 million bpd in October, approaching its pre-war level of 28.63 million bpd in February. Saudi Arabia led the recovery, increasing output to 10.56 million bpd from 8.37 million bpd in September.
