Washington is "very pleased" that Saudi Arabia is making sure that the global oil market is well supplied, the US envoy on Iran, Brian Hook, said on Friday amid fears of energy disruption because of growing military tension in the Middle East.
"They have been very helpful at ensuring the well-supplied and stable oil market, and so we're very pleased," Hook told a news conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh.
His comments came as Brent oil rallied above $65 per barrel and was set to notch up a 6 percent gain this week on fears of a US military attack on Iran that would disrupt flows from the Middle East.
Brent crude was up $1.02, or 1.6 percent, at $65.47 a barrel by 1038 GMT. The global benchmark jumped 4.3 percent on Thursday and was up around 6 percent for the week, in its first weekly gain in five weeks.
US West Texas Intermediate crude was up 58 cents, or 1 percent, at $57.63 a barrel. The US benchmark surged 5.4 percent on Thursday and was on track for a 10 percent increase this week.
"Crude prices are spiking on increased Middle East tensions after Iran shot down a US drone in what the US claims is international airspace," said Jefferies analyst Jason Gammel.
Tensions have been on the rise since US sanctions on Iran severely reduced oil exports from OPEC’s third largest producer and as Washington has blamed Tehran for a series of attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf.
"The recent ups and downs in oil pricing indeed reflect the unsteady state in the oil markets (given) rising geopolitical tensions...and concerns of slowing oil demand due to trade conflicts," said Victor Shum, Singapore-based vice president of energy consulting at IHS Markit.
