Oil markets split between Iran diplomacy and SPR drawdown as Brent holds above $114

Crude prices gave back ground Thursday as traders weighed emergency supply releases against inconclusive diplomatic contacts involving Washington, Tehran and Qatar, with neither force gaining the upper hand.

December WTI crude oil futures were trading at $102.77 at 00:05 GMT Friday, down $0.67 or 0.65% for the week, after reaching $103.92 the previous week. Brent settled Thursday at $114.88 a barrel, down $0.44 on the day.

The U.S. Energy Department confirmed it had awarded companies the right to borrow nearly 16.8 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve on October 28, following an earlier award of 23.8 million barrels, completing the bulk of Washington's contribution to a broader International Energy Agency coordinated release totalling about 40 million barrels. The SPR is near its lowest level since 1982.

Bullish traders cited constrained flows through the Strait of Hormuz, attacks around Saudi energy infrastructure, low distillate inventories and heavy SPR use. Bearish traders pointed to the SPR barrels already entering the market and the renewed diplomatic outreach.

No agreement between the parties has been reached, and threats to regional shipping and Saudi infrastructure remain active, keeping both sides of the trade in play.