Oil falls, records second-weekly gain

Oil drilling rigs

Oil settled lower on Friday after Angola said it would exit the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Red Sea tensions led to supply disruptions.

Brent crude for February delivery fell 0.4%, or $0.32, to settle at $79.07 a barrel, but recorded a second-weekly gain of 3.3%. Meanwhile, March-delivery contracts fell to $78.8.

WTI contracts for February delivery also dropped 0.45%, or $0.33, to $73.56 a barrel, with a weekly gain of 2.5%.  

The US drilling rig count fell three units to 498 in the week ended Dec. 21, General Electric Co.’s Baker Hughes energy services firm said in its closely followed report on Friday.

Russia promised to deepen the voluntary cuts of oil and products exports under OPEC+ cooperation agreement in the first quarter of 2024 by 200,000 bpd to 500,000 bpd, Reuters reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.