Oil closes flat after news of planned OPEC+ production increase in August.
Brent crude oil futures closed at $67,77 per barrel.
By Erwin Seba HOUSTON (Reuters) Oil prices rose slightly on Friday, recovering from a drop into negative territory after a report indicated that OPEC+ was planning to increase production in August, but fell about 12% for the week, their biggest drop since March 2023. Brent crude futures settled at $67,77 a barrel, up 0,1%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude finished 0,4% higher at $65,52 a barrel.
Four delegates from OPEC+, which includes allies from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, said the group was ready to increase production by 411.000 barrels per day in August, following a similar production increase already planned for July. "The report about an OPEC increase was published and prices plummeted," said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Price Futures Group, regarding the earlier drop.
Oil prices fell 12% in the week following the ceasefire between Israel and Iran. During the 12-day war that began after Israel attacked Iran's nuclear facilities on June 13, Brent prices briefly rose to over $80 a barrel before falling to $67 a barrel after US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire between Iran and Israel.
"The market has almost entirely shed the geopolitical risk premiums of nearly a week ago, as we return to a fundamentals-driven market," said Janiv Shah, an analyst at Rystad. Flynn said expectations of higher demand in the coming months gave oil a boost on Friday.
(Reporting by Erwin Seba in Houston, Siyi Liu in Singapore and Nicole Jao in New York)
