Crude oil prices finished up again on Friday as the Strait of Hormuz remained closed to oil shipping because of missile and drone attacks that left several ships burning as well as crude oil storage facilities in neighboring Middle East countries.
The global benchmark, Brent closed up at more than $100 while WTI in the U.S. finished just under $99 a barrel.
It was a second straight day of increases after oil hit $119 a barrel on Monday then dropped as the fighting continued throughout the week as U.S. and Israeli war planes continued bombing and attacking Iranian military and leadership positions.
Brent crude, the global benchmark, initially fell 1% on Friday as investors reacted to a U.S. Treasury Department announcement that it would allow the purchase of Russian oil already at sea, a move designed to offset supply shocks.
Reuters reported Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the move was aimed at helping stabilize energy markets amid supply shocks stemming from the war with Iran. The U.S. had earlier this week issued some waivers for Russian oil purchases, with world no.3 importer India being allowed to ship crude from Moscow.
Bessent noted as well that the U.S. is planning on the Navy providing an escort for commercial vessels traversing the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway south of Iran through which a fifth of the world’s oil passes.
At Friday’s close, Brent crude rose $2.90 or 2.89% per barrel to finish at $103.40 a barrel.
West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. standard, closed at $98.65 with a gain of $2.92 or 3.07% per barrel.
Gasoline prices continued their climb late Friday, according to AAA which reported the U.S. average had risen 4 cents a gallon since Thursday to reach $3.63. Diesel fuel rose 3 cents at $4.89 per gallon.
Oklahoma’s gasoline average on Friday jumped 9 cents in one day to hit $3.14 per gallon and diesel fuel went up 7 cents at $4.18.
The average gasoline price in Oklahoma City went up 16 cents by Friday to reach $3.20 per gallon and diesel fuel rose 13 cents to $4.16.
Tulsa’s average rose 5 cents since Thursday to hit $3.25 per gallon and diesel fuel gained 2 cents at $4.34.
U.S. natural gas prices finished at $3.13 MMBtu with a loss of $0.098 or 3.03%.
Gainers outnumbered Oklahoma energy firms recording losses on Friday. The big gainer was Helmerich & Payne with a strong 5% increase for the day. The firm with the biggest loss was Stardust Power which suffered a more than 12% drop in the value of its shares.