Oil futures gave up early gains on Friday and ended lower, booking their biggest weekly decline since 2023 as fears of a slowdown in the US and European banking sectors loomed. Price Action West Texas Intermediate crude CL.1, -2.87% CL00, – 2.87% CLJ23, -2.87% for April delivery fell $1.61, or 2.4%, to settle at $66.74 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, giving the U.S. benchmark a 13% weekly gain. Left with a loss. The US The benchmark suffered its biggest weekly loss since June, posting its lowest level since Dec. 3, according to Dow Jones market data. May Brent crude BRN00, -0.48% BRNK23, -0.48% , the global benchmark, fell $1.73, o4 2.3. %, to settle at $72.97 a barrel on ICE futures Europe, near its lowest since Dec. 20. For the week, Brent fell 11.9%, its worst performance since the week ended August 15. Back on the Nymex, April gasoline RBJ23, – 0.44% fell 0.1% to $2.502 a gallon, while April heating oil HOJ23, +1.34% ended up 1.3% at $2.679 a gallon. April natural gas NGJ23, -6.80% rose 7% to end at $2.338 per million British thermal units. Market drivers WTI and Brent both ended the week at 15-month lows, with analysts taking the brunt of a commodity sell-off linked to the collapse of California’s Silicon Valley bank and fears of a slowdown due to difficulties at Swiss lender Credit Suisse. Oil prices have been particularly dragged down amid the current market turmoil, Commerzbank commodities analyst Barbara Lambrecht said in a note. Oil rose modestly on Thursday after Credit Suisse said it had tapped a $54 billion lifeline from the Swiss National Bank and 11 U.S. banks agreed to deposit $30 billion with First Republic Bank FRC, -31.59% the latest U.S. bank to find itself under scrutiny. is a regional lender. . Credit Suisse CS, -7.41% shares saw renewed pressure on Friday. See: Here’s why Credit Suisse’s failure matters to US investors “We view the price decline as excessive and largely speculatively driven,” Lambrecht wrote. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak and Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman met on Thursday. They discussed ways to possibly stabilize oil prices, Lambrecht said, adding that the recovery of Chinese oil demand after the lifting of Covid restrictions is an “important underpinning”. Also, crude is now trading at levels that could prompt the US government to consider refilling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which is at a 40-year low, she said. “In our view, this provides enough (expected) support for oil prices without OPEC+ calling an extraordinary meeting,” Lambrecht said. “Although many suggest that oil prices will begin to rise again, however, market sentiment will likely be the main factor determining the direction of oil prices in the short term.”
