Oil prices extended a decline on September 17 on signs that supply disruptions in the Middle East are set to ease, with a key pipeline being partially restored in Saudi Arabia.


Brent traded below $102 a barrel after losing 2.7% on Wednesday, as the kingdom seeks to return about half the capacity of its key East-West pipeline within days, after shutting it last week following drone strikes. At the same time, Saudi Arabia has sold Asian refiners more oil for collection at locations just outside the Strait of Hormuz.

Crude has rallied by more than 70% this year, fanning the inflationary pressures that prompted the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates on Wednesday and signal more tightening. Some inflation-linked trades appeared to reverse on Thursday, with equities rallying and Treasuries falling along with oil.

Still, risks remain as the US-Iran war cuts Middle East oil flows and the Russia-Ukraine conflict drags on. Traders also continue to watch as Houthi militants — advancing toward the critical Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea — escalate attacks on Saudi oil and shipping assets.

Oil prices climbed to around four-month highs earlier this week after shipping industry sources said crude loadings at Saudi Arabia's Red Sea export hub of Yanbu had been suspended and Riyadh had cancelled some cargo deliveries to European customers. The suspension followed attacks on the East-West pipeline, which supplies Yanbu.