Anticipation in the oil markets for the results of the “OPEC Plus” meeting
The price of a barrel of oil exceeded $111 on Friday in a volatile session as fears of disruption to Russian oil exports due to Western sanctions outweighed expectations of an increase in Iranian oil supplies in the event of a nuclear deal with Tehran.
Markets were turbulent due to indications of an escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, with reports that a nuclear power plant in Ukraine had caught fire before authorities announced that the fire had broken out in a building used as a training center and had been put out.
Brent crude rose to 114.23 dollars a barrel, and by 09:20 GMT, it rose 63 cents, or 0.6 percent, to 111.09 dollars a barrel.
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 64 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $108.31 a barrel, following touching $112.84 a barrel.
Oil prices reached their highest levels in ten years this week and are heading towards achieving the strongest weekly gains since mid-2020, with US crude rising more than 18 percent and Brent crude increasing by 13 percent.
It is expected that more oil supplies will be pumped into the market due to a coordinated withdrawal of oil stocks in developed countries, amounting to 60 million barrels.
Japan said it plans to withdraw 7.5 million barrels of oil, an amount that constitutes a small share of its demand.
