Brent oil prices continued their upward trend on Friday as tensions between the U.S. and Iran intensify.
Brent oil prices continued their upward trend on Friday as tensions between the U.S. and Iran intensify.
International benchmark Brent crude was trading at $62.82 per barrel at 0639 GMT on Friday with a 0.83% gain after it ended Thursday at $62.30 a barrel.
American benchmark West Texas Intermediate was at $55.76 a barrel on Friday at the same time for a 0.70% rise after closing the previous session at $55.37 per barrel.
The U.S. destroyed an Iranian drone in the Strait of Hormuz after it threatened an American warship, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday.
The USS Boxer, a U.S. Navy amphibious assault ship, shot down the Iranian unmanned aircraft, Trump said.
Oil prices increased in reaction to the announcement on Thursday. Brent jumped 1.3% up to $64.59 after opening on Thursday at $63.70.
WTI rose by 1.5% from $56.44 to $57.29 on Thursday.
On Friday Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi denied that Iran had lost a drone in the Strait of Hormuz.
'We have not lost any drone in the Strait of Hormuz nor anywhere else. I am worried that USS Boxer has shot down their own UAS [Unmanned Aerial System] by mistake!' Araqchi said on Twitter.
Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency lowered its oil demand forecast for 2019 to 1.1 million barrels per day on Thursday due to diminishing global demand amid a trade dispute between the U.S. and China.
By Zeynep Beyza Kilic
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr