Oil
Crude prices fell by more than 3% on Friday, posting steep weekly losses as oil tankers continued exiting the Strait of Hormuz, easing supply concerns despite a cargo vessel being hit near Oman the previous day.
Brent crude futures settled at $71.99, and US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude finished at $69.23. For the week, Brent fell 10.6%, while WTI declined 9.6%.
Data showed that crude shipments through the Strait rose last week to their highest level since the US-Israel conflict with Iran began at the end of February. Despite the ceasefire that reopened the waterway, overall traffic remains well below the pre-war daily average.
Gas
Asia's spot liquefied natural gas price held steady last week near a four-month low, as the market remained hopeful about a peace deal materialising in the US-Israel conflict with Iran.
The average LNG price for August delivery into northeast Asia was $15.35 per million British thermal units, up from $15.30 per mmBtu the week before.
As Qatar has been cycling small volumes through its plants, a month-long production recovery is currently expected. Safe passage navigating sea mines will also be a determining factor of how much LNG will be bottlenecked by marine traffic out of the strait.
This article was supplied by the Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah International Foundation for Energy and Sustainable Development.